A 1,500-acre wildfire in the seaside town of Big Sur, California, prompted evacuation orders and forced the closure of a section of a key roadway on Saturday, according to state and municipal authorities, Reuters reports.
According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), the Colorado Fire, which has been burning since Friday, is 5% under control.
From near the coastal town of Carmel-by-the-Sea to Andrew Molera State Park, a 20-mile length of State Highway 1, a picturesque north-south route on the Pacific Coast, was shut.
According to county records, some 400 individuals in Monterey County were evacuated from 1,100 houses, according to an American Red Cross official.
According to the Red Cross, four individuals and a cat remained overnight at a shelter in a local school.
California has historically had an intensive wildfire season, but it has gotten prolonged and more severe in recent years, owing in part to global warming.
According to Cal Fire, the wildfire season started exceptionally earlier last year due to the prolonged heat, which resulted in drought and poor reservoir levels. According to the agency, the state tackled 297 fires on 1,171 acres in January 2021 alone.
So far in 2022, the Colorado Fire is the sole fire on Cal Fire’s incident list.
California is also dealing with the Santa Ana winds this year. According to the National Weather Service, a strong wind warning was in force for the region, with gusts of up to 70 miles per hour (112.65 kilometers per hour) likely.
However, the Red Cross said that winds had eased and were expected to remain low throughout the weekend.
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