Jul 22, 2021 - Energy & Climate

Massive California wildfire crosses into Nevada

Rebecca Falconer

Emergency personnel working around the clock to contain the Tamarack Fire and save the town of Markleeville July 16 — Emergency personnel working around the clock to contain the Tamarack Fire near the town of Markleeville on July 17. Photo: Ty O'Neil/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

A massive, uncontained wildfire has crossed the border from Northern California into Nevada — triggering fresh evacuations, this time in the Silver State, AP reported early Thursday.

The big picture: The Tamarack Fire, south of Lake Tahoe, has razed over 68 square miles since erupting on July 4 — one of 23 blazes ignited by lightning strikes, according to the U.S. Forest Service. It's one of 78 large fires raging across 13 U.S. states.

Of note: Oregon's Bootleg Fire, the largest blaze in the U.S. and which officials say was also sparked by lightning, swelled to 618 square miles in the Fremont-Winema National Forest.

Yes, but: Cooler conditions with less gusty winds were assisting Oregon firefighting efforts on Wednesday and the blaze was 38% contained, per the U.S. Forest Service.

"The fire also was approaching an area burned by a previous fire on its active southeastern flank, raising hopes that lack of fuel could reduce its spread," AP noted.

Context: The wildfires, many of which started when a severe heat wave erupted in June, have been linked by scientists to human-caused climate change.

Go deeper: Western wildfire smoke chokes Upper Midwest, East Coast

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Massive California wildfire crosses into Nevada

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