California’s largest wildfire so far this year was significantly contained on Monday after blackening a strip of mountainous grassland between San Francisco Bay and the Central Valley.
The Corral Fire was 75% contained after burning more than 22 square miles (57 square kilometers) over the weekend, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said. A house was destroyed and two firefighters were injured.
The wind-driven fire broke out Saturday afternoon on land managed by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, one of the nation’s leading nuclear weapons science and technology centers. The cause was under investigation.
Thousands of people in the area, including parts of the city of Tracy in San Joaquin County, were forced to evacuate centers on Saturday. Evacuation orders were lifted when improving weather allowed firefighters to advance in fighting the flames.
The wildfire posed no threat to any laboratory facilities or operations, Lawrence Livermore spokesman Paul Rhien said in a statement to The Associated Press on Sunday morning.
California had consecutive rainy years that ended the drought but generated vegetation growth. Cal Fire’s outlook for 2024 noted that increased drought from mid-May to June would potentially lead to more small fires and the possibility of larger fires depending on wind. The Corral Fire is by far the largest of the more than 1,200 wildfires so far this year.
The progress against the Corral Fire comes just ahead of a predicted major heat wave. The National Weather Service issued warnings about “dangerously hot conditions” across the Central Valley from Tuesday through Thursday.
Although the fire is mostly contained, in general, fires burn hotter when the weather is warmer, said Jacob Bendix, professor emeritus in the geography and environment department at Syracuse University. He added that strong winds could carry embers across highways. Drought contributes to dangerous fire seasons, but, paradoxically, so can wetter years.
“The flip side of this is that moisture also allows for growth,” he said. In some places, a wet winter that causes vegetation to flourish could ultimately worsen future fire seasons when all those plants dry out and become fuel.
There tend to be fewer fires when the snowpack gradually melts throughout the summer, but with overall higher temperatures due to of Climate Change, more snow tends to fall as rain and snowpack melt earlier. This has also been a problem in recent years, he said.
___
The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from several private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find APs standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and areas of coverage funded in AP.org.
This story originally appeared on ABCNews.go.com read the full story
