Over 300K acres burned across 6 US states, 2 firefighters dead
Wildfires burnt over 300,000 acres across six states across the western United States on Sunday amid a scorching summer heat wave that blankets millions of residents.
Pushed by strong winds, the so-called Bootleg Fire burnt nearly 143,600 acres in Oregon and 0% was contained.
“The Bootleg Fire will see the potential for extreme growth today,” the National Weather Service in Medford, Oregon, said on Twitter.
The fire is being fueled by extreme drought and temperatures near 100 that are not likely to subside until midweek.
“The fire behavior we are seeing on the Bootleg Fire is among the most extreme you can find and firefighters are seeing conditions they have never seen before," fire incident commander Al Lawson said.
Further south, the equally formidable Beckwourth Complex Fire, California's largest wildfire of 2021, burnt more than 20,000 more acres on Sunday.
All residents were asked to reduce power consumption quickly after the fire knocked out interstate power lines, blocking up to 4,000 megawatts of electricity from flowing into the state.
The fire prompted mandatory evacuations, closed portions of US Route 395 and has nearly crossed state lines into Nevada.
"I know the dry conditions and the winds have been a factor," said US Forest Service incident spokeswoman Kimberly Kaschalk. "That's been a challenge since Day One."
The fire is composed of the Dotta and Sugar fires. The Dotta Fire is about 670 acres and 99% contained, but the Sugar Fire is 83,256 acres and only 8% contained.
In southeast Washington, at least four wildfires were burning, the largest of which was 46,352 acres. Over the past week, record-breaking temperatures left the state very dry, said Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz.
In Idaho, Governor Brad Little declared a wildfire emergency Friday after fires were sparked following lightning storms which swept across the drought-stricken region.
Also in Montana, several fires throughout the state blocked roads and prompted officials to issue evacuation orders.
Meanwhile, in Mohave county, Arizona, two firefighters battling a fire died Saturday after their aircraft crashed, local media reported.
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