7/29/2019 Calof. Wildfire
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/more-evacuations-urged-as-calif-wildfire-spreads-into-
yosemite-grows-to-165-square-miles/2013/08/23/34a8b37e-0c55-11e3-89fe-
abb4a5067014_story.html
Calif. wildfire surges tonearly 200 square miles andspreads into
YosemiteNational Park
View Photo GalleryYosemite National Park wildfire:The Rim Fire
one of more than 50 major brush
blazes burning across the Western United States has been growing
exponentially, a U.S. Forrest
Service spokesman says. It threatens about 2,500 homes, hotels
and camp buildings near the park.
ByAssociated Press,
FRESNO, Calif. A giant wildfire raging out of control grew to
nearly 200 square miles
Friday and spread into Yosemite National Park at the height of
the summer season for
one of Californias most popular tourist destinations.
While it has closed some backcountry hiking, it was not
threatening the Yosemite Valley,
home to such iconic sights as the Half Dome and El Capitan rock
formations and
Bridalveil and Yosemite falls.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/more-evacuations-urged-as-calif-wildfire-spreads-into-yosemite-grows-to-165-square-miles/2013/08/23/34a8b37e-0c55-11e3-89fe-abb4a5067014_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/business/more-evacuations-urged-as-calif-wildfire-spreads-into-yosemite-grows-to-165-square-miles/2013/08/23/34a8b37e-0c55-11e3-89fe-abb4a5067014_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/business/more-evacuations-urged-as-calif-wildfire-spreads-into-yosemite-grows-to-165-square-miles/2013/08/23/34a8b37e-0c55-11e3-89fe-abb4a5067014_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/yosemite-national-park-wildfire/2013/08/22/d1d14892-0b2d-11e3-9941-6711ed662e71_gallery.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/business/more-evacuations-urged-as-calif-wildfire-spreads-into-yosemite-grows-to-165-square-miles/2013/08/23/34a8b37e-0c55-11e3-89fe-abb4a5067014_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/business/more-evacuations-urged-as-calif-wildfire-spreads-into-yosemite-grows-to-165-square-miles/2013/08/23/34a8b37e-0c55-11e3-89fe-abb4a5067014_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/business/more-evacuations-urged-as-calif-wildfire-spreads-into-yosemite-grows-to-165-square-miles/2013/08/23/34a8b37e-0c55-11e3-89fe-abb4a5067014_story.html
7/29/2019 Calof. Wildfire
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But in an unusual move, Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of
emergency for San
Francisco 150 miles awaybecause of the threat to the citys
utilities.
The blaze had already done some damage and threatened more to
the lines and stations
that pipe power to San Francisco, so Brown, who had declared an
emergency for the fire
area earlier in the week, made the unusual move of extending it
to the city across the
state.
San Francisco gets 85 percent of its water from the
Yosemite-area Hetch Hetchy
reservoir that is about 4 miles from the fire, though that had
yet to be affected. But it was
forced to shut down two of its three hydroelectric power
stations in the area.
The city has so far been able to buy power on the open market
and use existing supplies,but further disruptions or damage could
have an effect, according to city power officials
and the governors statement.
The declaration frees funding and resources to help the city and
makes it eligible for
more federal funds to help with power shortages and outages or
water problems.
The weeklong blaze on the timbered slopes of the Western Sierra
Nevada has spread to
196 square miles and was only 5 percent contained. It continued
to grow in several
directions, although most of the fire activity is pushing to the
east right into Yosemite,
said Daniel Berlant, spokesman for the California Department of
Forestry and Fire
Protection.
Smoke blowing across the Sierra into the state of Nevada forced
officials in several
counties to cancel outdoor school activities and issue health
advisories, especially for
people with respiratory problems.
Authorities urged more evacuations in nearby communities where
thousands havealready been forced out by flames.
The fire was threatening about 5,500 residences, according to
the U.S. Forest Service.
The blaze has destroyed four homes and 12 outbuildings in
several different areas. More
than 2,000 firefighters were on the lines and one sustained a
heat-related injury.
While the park remained open, the blaze closed a 4-mile stretch
of State Route 120, one
of three entrances into Yosemite on the west side. Two other
western routes and an
eastern route were open.
