A wildfire sparked by a lightning strike at Yosemite National Park has spread to cover over 167 acres, and with temperatures over the coming week forecast to exceed 100F, firefighters are struggling to get the blaze under control.
The Red Fire was discovered on August 4, just one day after emergency responders managed to control the enormous Washburn Fire that threatened the park's ancient sequoia trees. The National Park Service's fire map for Yosemite shows the new blaze burning about eight miles southeast of Yosemite Village.
The situation is exacerbated by the heatwave currently gripping inland areas of California, and as SFGate reports, temperatures in Yosemite Valley are expected to reach triple digits on Monday. The NPS has shared a time-lapse video (which you can watch below) showing just how far the fire was able to spread in the course of only 20 minutes.
Time lapse video showing about 20 minutes of fire growth on the lightning caused #Redfire estimated to be 50 acres now. pic.twitter.com/nsk5PfikqiAugust 13, 2022
“Visitors are reporting seeing smoke," Yosemite spokesperson Scott Gediman told Clarke Broadcasting. "We’re monitoring it. We know about it. It’s not any kind of threat. We had a couple of other small starts earlier in the week, and those other starts went out. So, the Red Fire of the lightning strikes is the one that is still going and crews are on it now.”
The park is still open, but if you're planning a visit, check the latest alerts from the NPS before traveling. If you have any concerns, you can send an email via the NPS website, or call the park on 209/372-0200, then dial 3 or 5.
