Yosemite National Park is advising travelers to reduce outdoor activity due to poor air quality caused by the Detwiler Fire burning near Mariposa.
Yosemite is open but smoky; reduce outdoor activity due to poor air quality. #DetwilerFire still burning near Mariposa.
— Yosemite National Pk (@YosemiteNPS) July 20, 2017
The park’s official Twitter account described it as “open but smoky” in its latest update.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the fire has destroyed 29 structures, forced 4,000 people to evacuate and temporarily cut of power to Yosemite. By Wednesday evening, the fire was only about 7 percent contained and burning about 35 miles west of Yosemite National Park, within a mile of central Mariposa.
The Modesto Bee reports that parts of southern Tuolumne County were added Wednesday evening to the evacuation warning zone, and that more areas could follow. The evacuation warning means that people should expect to leave the area soon if they have special needs or livestock. An evacuation advisory was issued for all areas south of Highway 120 between the town of Moccasin and Smith Station Road.
The Detwiler Fire forced the evacuation of Mariposa, which is in the Sierra Nevada mountains southwest of Yosemite in central California, on Tuesday.
According to ABC 30 Action News, a few holdouts have remained behind despite the evacuation, including Steve and Casey Aitchison, who own the state’s largest alpaca farm. More than 3,000 firefighters have been directed to fight the blaze.
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