UPDATE: SUNDAY, 1:28 PM – On Sunday September 20, 2015 Cal Fire announced all mandatory evacuations on the Butte Fire in Calaveras County have now been lifted.
As damaged assessment continues the Butte Fire and Valley Fire are now the 6th and 7th most destructive fires in California history, Cal Fire officials said.
UPDATE: FRIDAY, 7:02 AM – Cal Fire has reported that the fire is now 60% contained and has burned 70,760 acres.
UPDATE: TUESDAY, 9:24 PM – The Butte Fire is now at 71,780 acres and is 40 percent contained.
UPDATE: TUESDAY, 6:43 AM – The Butte Fire is now 71,660 acres and 37 percent contained, according to Cal Fire.
UPDATE: MONDAY, 6:35 AM – Butte Fire in Amador and Calaveras counties has now burned 71,063 acres and is 35 percent contained, according to Cal Fire.
UPDATE: SUNDAY, 6:15 PM – The Butte Fire in Amador and Calaveras counties is now 65,300 acres and 25 percent contained according to Cal Fir PIO, Daniel Berlant. Over 4,500 firefighters are battling the fire.
UPDATE: 12:33 PM –According to Cal Fire officials, firefighters are getting the upper hand on the devastating wildfire that has forced hundreds to evacuate from their homes.
At this time there are 17 helicopters, 79 hand crews, and 4,163 firefighters battling the fire.
Currently, Cal Fire does does not know what structures have been burned down, but they have estimated at least 86 structures have been destroyed.
UPDATE 9:13 A.M.: Cal Fire has confirmed 86 homes and 51 building as been burned and accounted for. Fire behavior remained moderate throughout the night moving North and East.
Firefighters continue to fight the fire aggressively but critical fuel moisture levels, steep terrain, and limited fire access continue to provide challenges for firefighters.
Damage Assessment teams have arrived and started to evaluations of damaged and destroyed structures.
Butte Fire has torched more than 65,000 acres ans is still 20 percent contained.
Road closures: In Amador County that have been affected are Clinton Road at Butte Mountain Road (Both Ends) Butte Mountain Road Cutoff at Clinton Road.
Amador Lane at Clinton Road, Electra at SR 49, Ponderosa Road at Tabeaud, Access to Lake Tabeaud is closed; Hwy 88 at W. Clinton Road, Hwy 88 at Irish Town Road, Hwy 88 at Tabeaud Road, Hwy 88 at Aqueduct Circle, Highway 88 at Mount Zion, SR 26 South of Hwy 88.
Mokelumne Hill to Ridge Road; Ridge Road closed to Railroad Flat Road; Railroad Flat Road closed to Mountain Ranch Road; Mountain Ranch Road closed to Hwy 49; Michel Road is closed.
Large Animal Pet Shelters: Calaveras County Fairgrounds and Amador County Fairgrounds, contact Kelly Reason at 530-503-5233
Evacuation Centers: Red Cross: 925-588-6678 Jackson Rancheria Hotel,, Jackson Jenny Lind Veterans Hall, CA Good Samaritan Church, Valley Springs Burson Full Gospel Church, Burson Copperopolis Elementary School.
Large Animal Pet Shelters: (Calaveras) Calaveras County Fairgrounds (Amador) Amador County Fairgrounds, contact Kelly Reason at 530-503-5233
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UPDATE 7:35 A.M.: According to Cal Fire, The Butte Fire has now charred at least 65,215 acres and is now 20 percent contained. Currently, there are 3,800 firefighters battling the fire and thousands of homes are still threatened.
Firefighters have been called in from all over California to help put out this destructive fire burning in Calaveras County.
UPDATE 6:36 P.M.: Butte Fire swells to over 64,000 acres and is only 5 percent contained.
SAN ANDREAS (AP) Update – The mandatory evacuation order in San Andreas has been lifted. Gov. Jerry Brown has issued a state of emergency for Amador and Calaveras counties due to the Butte Fire.
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————- The 2,700 residents of a Northern California town have been told to evacuate and the governor is declaring a state of emergency as an explosive wildfire spreads.
State fire officials say everyone in the town of San Andreas, some 60 miles southeast of Sacramento, was ordered out Friday afternoon.
State fire spokeswoman Nancy Longmore says the fire is extremely dangerous. The Butte Fire grew from just a few hundred acres early Thursday to 50,000 a day later and is about 5 miles from the town.
She says eight structures have burned and 6,000 are threatened. It’s not clear how many of the structures are homes.
Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency to help in the firefight.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.
A California wildfire is threatening to sweep through an ancient grove of Giant Sequoia trees.
Lightning strikes on July 31 sparked the wildfire. It has charred 172 square miles, growing by nearly 40 square miles in the last week.
In a fight to save the trees, firefighters have been clearing lines with bulldozers around the Grant Grove and putting up sprinklers, said Andy Isolano, a spokesman for the Clovis Fire Department.
The grove is named for the towering General Grant tree that stands 268 feet tall. There are dozens of Sequoia groves in the Sierra Nevada, and some trees are 3,000 years old.
Although Isolano said the trees can endure fire, some are stressed by the four-year drought. The flames are also just a few miles from the grove.
Fresno County Sheriff’s deputies were going door to door Friday distributing mandatory evacuation notices to residents in the tiny community of Dunlap, east of Fresno. About 130 people live in Dunlap, but it wasn’t clear how many residents will need to leave.
On Thursday, officials from Kings Canyon National Park ordered the evacuation of all Sequoia National Forest park visitors and park employees, concession staff and residents of Wilsonia in the Grant Grove area of the park.
Also, in Northern California, a wildfire that exploded in size has charred 50 square miles and destroyed six homes in Amador County. Evacuations remained in place Friday, Cal Fire officials said.