Officials said that progress was being made in the battle against the largest fire in the country, the Bootleg Fire, which occurred in Oregon. However, additional evacuations were required Friday night and only half of the fire had been contained. Authorities said that the spread of the fire was slowing down, but more fire activity was expected to occur Saturday. However, thousands of homes were still at risk on its eastern side.
Governor Gavin Newsom of California has declared a state of emergency for four northern counties. Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state emergency in California for four counties north of Los Angeles on Friday, due to wildfires that he claimed were causing "conditions extreme peril to property and persons' safety."
Governor Greg Gianforte announced that firefighters from California and Utah arrived in Montana on Saturday. Greg Gianforte made the announcement. Five firefighters sustained injuries Thursday as swirling winds blew flames at them while they were working on the Devil's Creek fire, which was burning on steep terrain near Jordan.
They were still in hospital Friday. Mark Jacobsen, spokesperson for the Bureau of Land Management, declined to disclose the extent of their injuries. Three U.S. Forest Service firefighters were among the victims. Three U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service crewmen from North Dakota and two U.S. Forest Service firefighters hailing from New Mexico were among the firefighters.
The Tamarack Fire, which erupted south of Lake Tahoe in California, continued to ravage timber and chaparral. It also threatened communities along both California-Nevada state lines. At least 10 buildings have been destroyed by the fire that was sparked July 4th in Alpine County.
The Dixie Fire, which continues to burn in Butte County California's remote terrain, hampered firefighters' efforts to control the blaze. It is now the largest wildfire in California so far this year.
Heavy smoke from both large fires can reduce visibility and at times may cause aircraft to crash, providing support for firefighters on the ground. Air quality south of Lake Tahoe, and across the state border into Nevada, was very unhealthy.
Two blazes that threatened hundreds of homes in Okanogan County, Washington on Saturday were fought by firefighters. A small fire at Silverwood Theme Park in Idaho caused evacuations in the area and the park. Saturday saw the fire only half out and the park reopened.
Even though hot weather and afternoon winds were threatening to spread blazes, forecasters predicted scattered thunderstorms over the weekend in California, Nevada, Arizona, California, Utah, Nevada and other states. Forecasters indicated that some of these thunderstorms could produce little rain, but lots of lightning. This can ignite new blazes.
There were 85 large wildfires burning across the country, mostly in Western states. They had destroyed more than 1.4 million acres (2.1335 sq miles, or 553,000 hectares) of land.