SACRAMENTO, United States, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Western U.S. states are fighting raging wildfires as some states declared a state of emergency and communities face urgent evacuations.
U.S. National Interagency Fire Center daily situation briefings showed on Monday multiple large fires with zero or low containment and rapid spread in dry, windy terrain.
A 60-year-old contract firefighter from the state of Oregon died Sunday while working against the fire in Montana's mountain area. The fire covered about 9.1 square km on Monday morning, according to the fire center.
Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon elevated his response to the wildfire north of Pinedale with a formal emergency declaration to mobilize state support. Federal incident tables listed the blaze at about 40 square km and zero percent contained in the morning.
Officials described extreme behavior as crowning, running and long-range embers, and maintained evacuations plus a U.S. Forest Service area closure through Oct. 22.
Federal reports Monday said the fire remained active, threatening homes and infrastructure.
In central Oregon, incident managers reported about 89 square km burned on Monday morning with 5 percent containment. Authorities confirmed four homes destroyed and said evacuation levels affecting thousands of households were adjusted as conditions improved.
By late Monday, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection reported over 26 square km burned, 11 percent containment and more than 1,200 personnel assigned. The Napa County warned of toxic and flammable debris and kept evacuation orders in place.
Idaho's wildfire remained an active backcountry incident, with federal summaries listing about 43.5 square km with 5 percent containment, while closures were still in place along the Selway River corridor.
Other large fires drew attention but were better contained. Nevada's fire held steady after weekend rain, Utah's fire reached high containment, and Colorado's fire was shifting back to local control. Officials warned, however, that hot, windy weather could quickly erase recent progress.
Authorities urged residents to follow official alerts, avoid flying drones that can ground firefighting aircraft, and respect roadblocks and closure orders designed to keep the public away from active fire zones.
Fire managers said the next two to three days' weather will determine whether crews can convert temporary stops into lasting containment of the most active fires. ■