Wildfires in Inho and Mono counties spread rapidly amidst strong winds and humidity, prompting evacuation on Sunday evenings.
The vegetation fire was reported at Silver Canyon Road north of Bishop at 2:11pm, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The fire jumped up the highway and threatened “several structures,” Cal Fire BDU said in a post on X that “aircraft, heavy equipment and additional engines were requested.”
According to Cal Fire, the flames had burned at least 1,000 acres at 7:50pm. The fire was moving “rapidly” east and northeast, according to the National Weather Service in Las Vegas.
Strong winds and dry conditions prevented the firefight from the air. According to the Cal Fire BDU, several aircraft were grounded due to “extreme turbulence.”
Weather services reported gusts of wind power generation between 25-35 mph, with relative humidity of about 10%.
As of about 5:30pm, mandatory evacuations had been undertaken in parts of Inho county in the north, including the wilderness area of White Mountain, and in the southeast. Highway 6 has been closed.
The evacuation center has been established at the Benton Community Center at 58869 Highway 120 in Benton, according to the California Highway Patrol.
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