Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

3 days ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

3 days ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

4 days ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

4 days ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

4 days ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

4 days ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

4 days ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

4 days ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

4 days ago
Smoke and Ash Could Cover Valley Through Thursday, Air District Says
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 4 years ago on
October 4, 2021

Share

Containment of the KNP Complex dropped nearly in half Monday as the wildfire continued to consume timber and brush parched by the drought in Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Park.

In addition, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order in the Mineral King area — Gateway to the park entrance, including Sycamore Drive.

There will be a road closure at Highway 198 and Mineral King Road, the sheriff’s office said Monday morning.

Stay Inside, Air District Advises

Meanwhile, the Valley Air District said Monday afternoon that because smoke and ash from the KNP Complex and Windy fires have combined with a high-pressure system, the current Air Quality Alert is expected to continue through Thursday.

“The district warns residents being impacted by smoke to remain indoors to reduce their exposure to particulate matter emissions,” officials said in a news release.

“Those with existing respiratory conditions, including COVID-19, young children, and the elderly, are especially susceptible to the health effects from this form of pollution. Residents experiencing poor air quality due to wildfire smoke should move to a filtered, air-conditioned environment with windows closed.”

Late Sunday night, winds caused a spot fire across Mineral King Road, prompting an evacuation order for Crest, Sierra King, Hammond, and Oak Grove.

Parts of Fresno County are under evacuation warnings. They are Sequoia Lake, Cedarbrook, Etheda Springs. and Pinehurst.

To see if you are under an evacuation order or warning, click on this link and type in your address.

Containment Falls to 11%, Fire Grows to 67,708 Acres

Authorities said that the fire’s growth to nearly 68,000 acres cut the containment from 20% to 11% as of 11 a.m. Monday.

There are 1,531 firefighters on the scene: 26 crews, 61 engines, 40 water tenders, 21 dozers, and 12 helicopters.

Officials are hoping that the high-pressure ridge that has held smoke over the fire over the past few days will begin to break down today. If that occurs,  smoke will exit the area and aid firefighters.

Watch: Saturday’s KNP Complex Community Meeting

Firefighters Achieve 68% Containment of Windy Fire

Containment improved from 52% Saturday night to 68% on Monday morning. The fire is now about 95,000 acres.

Officials said that containment lines are holding in the Camp Nelson area. On the east side of the fire, crews have suppressed the fire directly from Johnsondale southward.

Helicopters are proving invaluable in the effort to squelch the blaze, officials said. They are dropping water on the fire’s edge to halt or slow its progression eastward toward the Kern River. On the southeastern corner west of Baker Point, all of the spot fires are contained.

Watch: Monday’s Windy Fire Briefing 

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Man Dead After Firing at US Border Patrol Station in Texas

DON'T MISS

Tulare County Flume Fire Burns 65 Acres in Sequoia National Forest, Evacuation Order Issued

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Fish Fire Burns 15 Acres Near Avocado Lake, 50% Contained

DON'T MISS

Wanted Fugitive Found Hiding in Attic Arrested in Chowchilla

DON'T MISS

Trump Says US Will Impose 25% Tariffs on Japan, South Korea

DON'T MISS

Wall Street Knocked Lower by Tariff Jitters, Musk’s Political Plan Hurts Tesla

DON'T MISS

Trial Over Free Speech on Campus, and Trump’s Student Crackdown, Begins

DON'T MISS

Planned Parenthood Sues Trump Administration Over Planned Defunding

DON'T MISS

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Injures 1 Firefighter, Burns Over 80,000 Acres

DON'T MISS

Two Border Patrol Officers Injured After Gunman Opens Fire in Texas

UP NEXT

Tulare County Flume Fire Burns 65 Acres in Sequoia National Forest, Evacuation Order Issued

UP NEXT

Fresno County Fish Fire Burns 15 Acres Near Avocado Lake, 50% Contained

UP NEXT

Wanted Fugitive Found Hiding in Attic Arrested in Chowchilla

UP NEXT

Trump Says US Will Impose 25% Tariffs on Japan, South Korea

UP NEXT

Wall Street Knocked Lower by Tariff Jitters, Musk’s Political Plan Hurts Tesla

UP NEXT

Trial Over Free Speech on Campus, and Trump’s Student Crackdown, Begins

UP NEXT

Planned Parenthood Sues Trump Administration Over Planned Defunding

UP NEXT

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Injures 1 Firefighter, Burns Over 80,000 Acres

UP NEXT

Two Border Patrol Officers Injured After Gunman Opens Fire in Texas

UP NEXT

Fresno Police Arrest 9 at Independence Day DUI Checkpoint

Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

Wanted Fugitive Found Hiding in Attic Arrested in Chowchilla

58 minutes ago

Trump Says US Will Impose 25% Tariffs on Japan, South Korea

2 hours ago

Wall Street Knocked Lower by Tariff Jitters, Musk’s Political Plan Hurts Tesla

2 hours ago

Trial Over Free Speech on Campus, and Trump’s Student Crackdown, Begins

2 hours ago

Planned Parenthood Sues Trump Administration Over Planned Defunding

2 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Injures 1 Firefighter, Burns Over 80,000 Acres

2 hours ago

Two Border Patrol Officers Injured After Gunman Opens Fire in Texas

2 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest 9 at Independence Day DUI Checkpoint

2 hours ago

Schumer Wants Probe of National Weather Service Response in Texas

3 hours ago

Israeli Guilt Over Gaza Lurks Beneath Silence and Denial

3 hours ago

Man Dead After Firing at US Border Patrol Station in Texas

WASHINGTON – A 27-year-old Michigan man was shot dead by police after opening fire with an assault rifle on a U.S. Border Patrol stati...

23 minutes ago

Photo of caution tape
23 minutes ago

Man Dead After Firing at US Border Patrol Station in Texas

The Flume Fire in Sequoia National Forest has burned 65 acres near Highway 190 with no containment as of Monday, July 7, 2025, prompting evacuations in Tulare County. (CalFire)
34 minutes ago

Tulare County Flume Fire Burns 65 Acres in Sequoia National Forest, Evacuation Order Issued

Firefighters stopped the forward progress of the Fish Fire near Avocado Lake after it burned 15 acres Monday, July 7, 2025, reaching 50% containment. (CalFire)
49 minutes ago

Fresno County Fish Fire Burns 15 Acres Near Avocado Lake, 50% Contained

Gary White, 42, a wanted fugitive, was arrested in Chowchilla after deputies found him hiding in an attic and he surrendered without incident on Thursday, July 3, 2025. (Madera County SO)
58 minutes ago

Wanted Fugitive Found Hiding in Attic Arrested in Chowchilla

Containers on a cargo ship are pictured at an industrial port in Tokyo, Japan, July 2, 2025. (Reuters File)
2 hours ago

Trump Says US Will Impose 25% Tariffs on Japan, South Korea

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., June 30, 2025. (Reuters/Brendan McDermid)
2 hours ago

Wall Street Knocked Lower by Tariff Jitters, Musk’s Political Plan Hurts Tesla

Protesters march near the campus of Columbia University in upper Manhattan to demand the release of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist and former Columbia student, on March 14, 2025. A federal judge in Boston on Monday, July 7, 2025, will hear opening statements in a trial expected to present the foremost challenge to the Trump administration’s aggressive posture toward foreign students who espoused pro-Palestinian views. (Dave Sanders/The New York Times)
2 hours ago

Trial Over Free Speech on Campus, and Trump’s Student Crackdown, Begins

Activists for Planned Parenthood demonstrate as the U.S. Supreme Court hears oral arguments in South Carolina's bid to cut off public funding to Planned Parenthood, in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 2, 2025. (Reuters File)
2 hours ago

Planned Parenthood Sues Trump Administration Over Planned Defunding

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend