Wildfire forces thousands from homes, threatens power at Yosemite
Around 4,000 people have been forced from their homes as a massive wildfire quickly grows in California.
Hundreds of firefighters are pushing through rough terrain to fight the flames. The fire is only five percent contained.
It has burned thousands of acres in central California and could cut power to Yosemite National Park.
CBS News correspondent Vladimir Duthiers reports fire crews are coming in from all over California to fight what's being called the Detwiler Fire. It started on Sunday, but exploded in size over the last 24 hours.
The fire raced down the mountain side in Mariposa on Tuesday, fueled by strong winds and hot, dry conditions.
Hundreds of firefighters are working around the clock to battle the flames. Overnight, video captured them on the front lines, trying to protect a building from the encroaching wall of fire. The video shows the ground still smoking as crews scramble to keep up.
"When you add the challenge that we're in the foothills, when you add in the slopes and grades and the temperatures we're dealing with, the humidity we're dealing with, it's a full-on challenge," Cal Fire Public Information Officer Isaac Sanchez said.
To the south, emergency crews are facing a new challenge -- the fire is threatening power lines that supply electricity to all of Yosemite National Park.
The massive wildfire burned more than 25,000 acres and prompted mandatory evacuations. Fifteen-hundred buildings are still in the path of the fire.
California Gov. Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency.
