LOS ANGELES: Califo­rnia’s latest wildfire has spread rapidly in the US state’s central mountains, just as firefighters were bringing a big blaze south of Los Angeles under control, authorities said on Sunday.

The Mosquito Fire has now swept through an area of more than 41,000 acres (16,600 hectares) in the Sierra Nevada range northeast of San Francisco in just four days, the official Cal Fire website reported.

Cal Fire said the blaze, covering parts of El Dorado and Placer counties, is just 10 percent contained.

It said while cooler temperatures — following more than a week of blistering heat — had somewhat slowed the fire’s progress, stronger winds were pushing it to the north and northeast, threatening hundreds of homes.

With the small town of Foresthill facing a growing threat, “several more evacuation orders and warnings have been issued,” Cal Fire said. The towns of Geor­get­own, Volcanoville and Bottle Hill were ordered to evacuate earlier, the daily Sacramento Bee reported.

Published in Dawn, September 12th, 2022