Yosemite National Park fire continues to burn, evacuation order remains in effect

The South Fork Fire grew minimally Saturday, but a mandatory evacuation order remained in effect Sunday for an area east of Highway 41, including Yosemite National Park’s historic Big Trees Lodge.

Smoke in Wawona and nearby areas was dense but was expected to improve through Sunday afternoon, according to a news release from Yosemite National Park.

The South Fork wildfire, which has been burning for a week, has grown to 3,191 acres with 10 percent of the blaze contained, park officials said. The wildfire continued to spread to the northeast. Firefighters continued aggressive suppression efforts on the fire’s western flank.

Wawona was evacuated Saturday due to concerns of fire spread from thunderstorm winds. The Mariposa County Sheriff’s Department on Saturday afternoon issued an mandatory evacuation order for all areas east of Highway 41 along Chilnualna Falls Road and Forest Drive, which includes the popular Yosemite hotel Big Trees Lodge, formerly known as the Wawona Hotel.

Crews were working in steep and inaccessible terrain with heavy fuel loads. Firefighters will continue to strengthen lines east of Wawona and suppress spot fires south of the South Fork of the Merced River, park officials said.

Aircraft were expected by Sunday afternoon to assist ground crews when conditions allow. The strategy for firefighters remained the same Sunday: Use aircraft and ground crews to hold the western and southern flanks of the wildfire, while monitoring the northern and eastern edges.

Thunderstorms are expected to produce erratic winds over the fire area throughout the week. There were 522 firefighters assigned to the South Fork Fire, along with seven helicopters and 13 fire engines.

This story was originally published August 20, 2017 at 11:53 AM with the headline "Yosemite National Park fire continues to burn, evacuation order remains in effect."