Crews make progress in Azusa wildfire; other blazes rage across state

Fire officials said crews battling a wildfire in the mountains above Azusa were making headway Monday night and downsized the number of acres that had been scorched.

The Tecolote fire was 60% contained after firefighters used an aggressive ground and air attack to battle the blaze, which broke out Sunday afternoon in the drought-ravaged Angeles National Forest.

Officials revised the size of the fire from 400 acres to 274 acres after conducting precise mapping, the U.S. Forest Service said.

The blaze was burning in steep, rugged terrain away from homes, said fire officials, adding that California 39 at East Fork was open only to residents.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.

The Tecolote fire was one several blazes that were raging across California, forcing officials to issue thousands of evacuation orders as flames raced across parched vegetation.

In Madera County, law enforcement authorities said they issued evacuation orders to 13,000 phone numbers in the foothill community of Oakhurst near Yosemite National Park.

Evacuation warning were issued to an additional 2,500 phone numbers, the Madera County Sheriff’s Office said.

The orders came after the Junction fire broke out Monday afternoon near California 41 and 49, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.

The blaze had scorched about 1,200 acres, the Sheriff’s Office said late Monday.

In Kern County, the Way fire had burned about 1,200 acres in the Sequoia National Forest and was threatened some structures, the U.S. Forest Service said.

On Monday night, about 300 firefighters were battling the blaze, which was devouring grass, brush and scattered pine trees.

Fire officials said that structures appeared to have burned but were still trying to gather damage information late Monday.

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