Wildfire prompts mandatory evacuation orders in Tulare County

TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Tulare County Sheriff's Office has issued mandatory evacuation orders for some residents due to a wildfire raging in Sequoia National Park.

The KNP Complex Fire is spreading quickly inside the park, the sheriff's office says. The KNP Complex is made up of two fires burning inside the park: the Colony Fire and the Paradise Fire. Both fires are the result of lightning strikes from a storm on Thursday.

Residents in the Silver City and Cabin Cove area on Mineral King Road are being ordered to leave immediately. Mineral King is under a mandatory evacuation order.

The fire may pose a threat to life and property, the sheriff's office says. As of Sunday evening, fire officials say the KNP Complex Fire has burned roughly 1,037 acres and is 0% contained, with a majority of those acres coming from the Paradise Fire.

"When we mapped it this morning, the Paradise Fire was at 807 acres and we anticipate it'll be significantly larger than that," said Leif Mathiesen, incident commander for the fire. "Most of the smoke you're seeing is coming from the Paradise Fire."

The Exeter Memorial Building at 324 N Kaweah Ave in Exeter is serving as the temporary evacuation point for evacuees.

Late Sunday night, TCSO issued an evacuation warning for a portion of Three Rivers that covers all points on both sides of Highway 198, east of the intersection of North Fork Drive, and includes all side roads that connect to Highway 198 east of North Fork Drive. This does not include points along North Fork or South Fork Drive, according to a release from the department.

The evacuation warning is not a mandatory evacuation order, but TCSO says it means there is a potential threat to life and property.