Wildfires burned Monday in seven Western states, from California to Washington and from Oregon to Wyoming. Evacuations were ordered in Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Wyoming, and firefighters were trying to stop a Washington blaze from reaching the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. Here’s a look at some of the fires:
• CALIFORNIA. Ocean air that arrived Monday in the Big Sur area was credited for better firefighting conditions after a fire that started July 22 scorched more than 63 square miles, destroyed 57 homes and 11 outbuildings, and is threatening 2,000 more structures.
Firefighters in Central California faced blistering heat as they worked on a blaze that burned rural homes and forced hundreds of evacuations near the Fresno County town of Prather. The blaze damaged a yet-undetermined number of 400 evacuated homes just outside the Sierra National Forest, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said. That fire started Saturday, and by Monday had grown to nearly 3 square miles, with just 15 percent of it contained Monday.
North of Los Angeles, a 65-square-mile wildfire was almost fully contained. The fire prompted the evacuation of about 20,000 people.
• IDAHO. Temperatures in the 90s, wind and low humidity helped a fire burning in rugged southwest Idaho grow Sunday. It grew to 60 square miles Monday.
The fire closed State Highway 21 between Idaho City and Lowman, and destroyed two outbuildings.
• MONTANA. An unknown number of homes were burned by a fast-moving wildfire in the Bitterroot National Forest in Montana.
Ravalli County authorities ordered residents of about 500 homes to evacuate or prepare to evacuate after the fire began Sunday near Hamilton. It burned nearly 5.5 square miles by Monday morning.
“I’ve talked to homeowners who said we had 200-foot flames coming off those trees. This thing really blew up, and I’ve never seen anything like it in the years that I’ve been” with the Bitterroot National Forest, spokesman Tod McKay said.
• NEVADA. About 800 firefighters battled a series of fires that threatened a tribal town near Pyramid Lake, north of Reno. The fire zone was about 78 square miles by Monday, said fire spokeswoman Jesse Bender.
Residents of 30 homes in Cottonwood Creek and Fish Springs Ranch were warned they would receive a 30-minute notice to evacuate.
About 600 people were ordered out of the town of Sutcliffe over the weekend.
Fire destroyed six houses and mobile homes, two vehicles and several out-buildings at historic Hardscrabble Ranch, according to Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal officials.
• OREGON. Eastern Oregon residents urged to evacuate over the weekend because of a wildfire were allowed to return home. About 20 structures remained threatened by the fire east of the town of Pendleton, the Oregon Department of Forestry said.
The East Oregonian reports that columns of smoke rose Sunday after the blaze scorched about 500 acres along Interstate 84. It was 25 percent contained by Sunday evening.
• WYOMING. Firefighters made progress over the weekend to contain several fires in Wyoming. A 2-square-mile blaze that destroyed eight homes and prompted the evacuation of about 140 others in Uinta County was 25 percent contained. Northwest of Dubois, a 21-square-mile blaze was 40 percent surrounded Monday. In neighboring Bridger-Teton National Forest, a fire that burned about 45 square miles was 81 percent contained Monday.
