Fast-moving Hawk Ridge Fire grows to 13,000 acres, forcing 42,000 evacuations

The Hawk Ridge Fire doubled in size overnight and now covers roughly 13,000 acres, with containment reported at 6 percent. Mandatory evacuation orders cover four canyon communities and about 42,000 residents — the largest evacuation the county has ordered in a decade.

Fire behavior analysts said the run began just after 9 p.m., when a downslope wind pushed the head of the fire onto a ridge that had not burned since the late 1990s. “There is fifty years of fuel on that slope and it is standing straight up,” one incident commander said at the morning briefing. “We are not going to stop it on the ridge. We are going to try to stop it in the flats.”

Where the lines are

Crews spent the night building a direct line along the eastern flank and burning out fuel ahead of it where the terrain allowed. Air tankers resumed drops at first light after being grounded by smoke.

Two state highways remain closed in both directions, and a third is open to outbound traffic only. Officials asked residents outside the order not to drive into the area to check on property, saying returning vehicles have twice blocked engines trying to move up the canyon.

If you are in the order, leave now with what you can carry. Do not wait for the flames to be visible from your street. By then the road is the problem, not the fire.— County sheriff, at the 6 a.m. briefing

Shelter and power

A shelter at the county fairgrounds has taken in about 1,900 people, with cots, meals and a veterinary tent for animals. Three school districts have canceled classes for the rest of the week and converted two gyms into overflow space.

The utility has cut power to about 31,000 customers as a precaution and says restoration will not begin until crews can safely inspect the lines. Officials warned that smoke will settle into valleys well outside the fire perimeter and advised residents with heart or lung conditions to stay indoors.

• Size: about 13,000 acres, up from 6,400 acres yesterday evening
• Containment: 6%, with the eastern flank listed as the priority
• Evacuations: mandatory for roughly 42,000 people in four communities
• Power: about 31,000 customers de-energized as a precaution

No injuries to civilians or firefighters have been reported. Damage inspection teams cannot enter the burned area until it cools, so no structure count has been released. Officials said the cause is under investigation and asked the public not to speculate.