Fast-Moving Wildfire Prompts Mandatory Evacuations In Lake County
LOWER LAKE, Calif. (CBS/AP) -- A fast-moving wildfire was threatening scores of homes Saturday in Lake County just off of Highway 29.
The fire broke out around 5 p.m.
Authorities issued four mandatory evacuation orders for an unknown number of homes as the wildfire south of Lower Lake, a town of about 1,300, spread to about 400 acres in mere hours.
Firefighters aided by water- and retardant-dropping air tankers were trying to keep the fire away from homes north of the lake, said Suzie Blankenship, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The blaze is 20 percent contained.
Blankenship said the fire was spreading rapidly because of parched conditions brought on by California's historic drought.
"The fuels are extremely dry," Blankenship said. "This is the time of year when everybody has to be extra cautious."
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