LOS ANGELES — Firefighters were expecting triple-digit temperatures and thunderstorms that could set off dangerous conditions Sunday in the battle against an out-of-control fire near the California border with Oregon.
The McKinney fire had ripped through more than 51,468 acres in the Klamath National Forest as of Sunday morning, destroying homes and threatening hundreds more in neighboring communities. It was 0% contained.
“The big difference is we have a lot more resources that have come onto the fire,” Caroline Quintanilla, spokesperson for the U.S. Forest Service, said Sunday morning. “We’ve gone from zero to 650 people.”
Quintanilla said firefighters were tapping old bulldozer lines from past fires in the region.
“This area gets lots of fires,” Quintanilla said. “But the particular area where the fire is actually burning right now has not burned since the mid-’50s. So that’s part of the concern as well, and part of the complexity, because it hasn’t burned in a long time.”
Officials said firefighters Sunday were prioritizing protecting the communities of Fort Jones and Yreka and in the Highway 96 corridor. Highway 96 was shut down along the Klamath River, where crews overnight worked to keep homes and buildings from burning, forest officials said in a social media update.
Some neighborhoods on the western side of Yreka were ordered to evacuate, though officials said they saw little progression overnight on the fire’s edge closest to the city.
“Definitely Yreka is of concern as is the other populated areas like Fort Jones,” Quintanilla said. “So we’re focusing on protecting the people, life and property.”
A red flag warning was in effect due to searing temperatures, which averaged about 100 degrees throughout the region on Sunday, officials said.
“The fire becomes more energetic and the potential for fire spread increases,” said Jonathan Garner, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “It just becomes a more active fire when temperatures warm up like that.”
Thunderstorms were expected later in the afternoon, which he said could bring lightning that could ignite new fires across the region as well as gusty, erratic winds. That all makes for unpredictable fire behavior.
“And that’s dangerous for firefighters,” Garner said.
The Red Cross late Saturday opened a shelter in the town of Weed after closing its location in Yreka when the area was ordered to evacuate, according to Stephen Walsh, a spokesman with the organization.
Twenty-two people are staying at the shelter, where they’re being offered beds, food and spiritual care, Walsh said.
“They can stay as long as they need to, and obviously the shelters are open to everybody,” he said.
Siskiyou County officials set up a webpage to help residents find dogs, cats and livestock rescued within the evacuation area. The animals were being cared for at various shelters.
The fire started about 2:38 p.m. Friday near Highway 96 and McKinney Creed Road southwest of the Klamath River, according to Cal Fire. The cause is under investigation.
