Firefighters deployed air tankers, bulldozers and hand crews to battle a fast-moving wildfire just west of Yosemite National Park on Sunday (July 24) that suddenly and unpredictably grew into one of the largest fires of the year, forcing thousands of evacuations.
Fueled by extreme heat and tinder-dry forests and underbrush, the Oak Fire that began on Friday closed within half a mile (0.8 km) from the town of Mariposa Pines but was still more than 10 miles (16 km) from Yosemite, famed for its giant, ancient sequoia trees.
By Sunday evening, the fire had consumed 15,603 acres (6,314 hectares), more than half the size of Paris, and was zero percent contained, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).
Ten structures were destroyed and five more were damaged.
Cal Fire officials said they had robust firefighting teams on scene early on, but the fire progressed atypically and overran their best efforts.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation.
Yosemite, about an hour’s drive from Mariposa County, is home to some of the largest and oldest sequoia trees in the world. The trees had been threatened by another wildfire earlier this month, but firefighters managed to save them.
