Firefighters report progress in battle against massive Hawk Fire in Nevada
At least 38 homes have been destroyed or damaged, authorities said.
Firefighters are gaining the upper hand on a massive brush fire that ignited over the weekend in the hills in Northern Nevada near Reno, destroying numerous homes and prompting the evacuation of 42,000 people, officials said on Monday afternoon.
Containment lines around the Hawk Fire on Monday went from zero to 27%, and fire crews appear to have stopped the blaze from reaching the community of Somersett in northwest Reno, fire officials said at a news conference.
But with the positive news, Chief Richard Edwards of the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District also shared some bad news. He said a damage assessment of some of the hard-hit areas counted 32 destroyed homes and another 6 that have been damaged.
"We expect those numbers to increase as damage assessment teams are still out in the field assessing other areas right now," Edwards said.
He said mandatory evacuation orders have been lifted in some areas, and that the number of people under evacuation has been reduced to 23,000 from 42,000.
However, Edwards said another 40,000 people remain under an evacuation warning.
At least four civilians and three first responders have been injured in the fire, Edwards said.
A preliminary investigation has found that the Hawk Fire was human-caused, authorities said. They did not immediately release details on whether the blaze was intentionally or accidentally set.
"We do know it was human-caused because there were no natural ignition sources that were present in that area," Edward said at a news conference on Sunday.
"Hot, dry and breezy conditions are expected to continue supporting active fire behavior over the next 48 hours," fire officials said in the update earlier on Monday.
About 900 firefighters and other first responders are battling the fire from the ground and air, officials said.
About 10,000 utility customers remained without power on Monday, down from about 60,000 at the peak of the blaze, officials said.
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo declared a state of emergency for Washoe County.
Mild weather in the fire zone northwest of Reno is helping firefighters gain containment on the Hawk Fire. Temperatures on Monday were in the mid-80s, with gusts up to 25 mph, and relative humidity around 25%.
On Tuesday, temperatures are expected to rise into the upper 80s, with gusts between 25 and 30 mph.
The Washoe County School District announced that all classes, events and activities were canceled on Monday.
"The decision to close schools is due to evacuations, impacts on the regional public safety resources, and to help keep roads clear for emergency vehicle," the school district said in a statement.
Northwest Specialty Hospital in Reno announced Sunday that it was evacuating patients from the facility "out of an abundance of caution."
"Patients have been safely transported to appropriate locations where their care will continue without interruption – no patients or staff remain in the building," the statement said.
Northern Nevada Health Systems said it had temporarily closed the emergency room at North Valleys north of Reno due to evacuations.
"My heart goes out to anyone in our community who has been impacted by the dangerous and fast-moving Hawk Fire," Reno Mayor Hillary Shieve said in a statement on social media.
The statement added: "Our firefighters and first responders are heroically fighting the fire and the high winds to save lives, homes, businesses, livestock and pets."
ABC News' Kyle Reiman contributed to this report.
Related Topics
Popular Reads
ABC News Live