Weather & Science

Yosemite Wildfire Burns Out of Control, Forcing Thousands to Flee

  • California fire exploded over weekend to biggest this year
  • Earlier blaze is still raging just a few miles away near park
A firefighter works to control a backfire operation conducted to slow the advancement on a hillside during the Oak Fire in Mariposa County, California, on Sunday.Photographer: David Odisho/Bloomberg
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Firefighters limited the growth of a wildfire that is advancing toward Yosemite National Park, the second blaze in the area this month.

Crews have contained about 16% of the Oak Fire, which exploded over the weekend in the Sierra Nevada forest to become the largest in California this year at 17,241 acres (6,977 hectares), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire, said Monday evening. Evacuation orders were lifted in some areas.