Briceburg Fire grows overnight; 2,000 acres burned, 10 percent contained, evacuations still in place
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Flames can be seen on both sides of Highway 140 near the community of Midpines. The Briceburg Fire grew overnight from 550 acres, now burning 2,000 acres of vegetation along the steep terrain north of Midpines in Mariposa County, making the firefight difficult for the nearly 1,000 crew members.
Wildfire concerns will leave approximately 800,000 Californians in the dark after midnight on Wednesday, including customers in Mariposa County.
Pacific Gas & Electric says it will shut off power to parts of 34 counties to reduce the risk of starting a wildfire. The power outages will come in stages and will depend on high winds. The Golden State has hot weather and high winds in the pipeline, which makes wildfires more likely to break out.
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A number of warnings and watches are in effect and CAL FIRE is boosting firefighter staffing levels in advance.
Authorities have issued mandatory evacuation orders for both sides of Highway 140 from the Octagon to Buffalo Gulch Road, including the Bug Hostel area and all of Buffalo Gulch Road.
Fire advisements have also been issued for surrounding areas including:
-Colorado Road from Hwy 140 to Davis Road
-All of Davis Road
-Hwy 140 from Colorado Road to the Midpines Market
-Ponderosa Way including all side roads: Deer Park, Leichtlin Lane and Feliciana Mtn Road
-Rancheria Creed Rd.
-Rumley Mine Rd.
A major tourist route to Yosemite National Park remains closed because of the Briceburg Fire that is burning along Highway 140.
Officials are directing travelers to take alternate roads into the park.
"Highway 140 is closed between Colorado Road and incline which impedes the access into Yosemite. Visitors to Yosemite can gain access through Highway 120 and Highway 41," a CAL FIRE representative told Action News. "Some areas are inaccessible by foot so we're dealing with that with aircraft resources."
It is still unclear what sparked the fire, which is burning near the area of last year's devastating Ferguson Fire.
The Ferguson burn scar could help firefighters with their effort because many of the fuels are no longer consumable but it still poses a risk for the things that have grown up for what we call light flashy fuels
Crews are expecting winds to pick up Tuesday evening.
Tuesday night, just miles from the blaze, CAL FIRE and Mariposa County officials spoke to dozens of concerned residents whose homes are now in an evacuation advisory zone.
"We've been watching the crews go by, the aircraft go by the last two days...still nervewracking," said Midpines resident, Ben Cunningham.
If power is cut as expected, it could impact more than 1,800 local residents.
"Our 1,800 residents are all northern county residents. Greeley Hill and Lake Don Pedro subdivision homes," said Mariposa County Sheriff Doug Binnewies.
Firefighters are working around the clock to fight the fire.
Speaking from experience, Cunningham says after back-to-back years of dealing with wildfires...he knows he has to be prepared.
"We have a lot of stuff packed from Ferguson last year. Still, a lot to pack but worst comes to worst, we'll be ready to go," he said.
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The sheriff's office says they haven't requested mutual aid and are keeping an eye on evacuated areas themselves.
They are asking residents to download Mariposa County Sheriff's Office Alert, which allows county officials to give people the latest details about the Briceburg Fire.
A Red Cross Evacuation Center has been established at the New Life Christian Church at 5089 Cole Road, Mariposa, CA 95338. Tips for those evacuating can be found here.
