A Category Change For Rim Fire
Red Cross Shelter at the Mother Lode Fairgrounds in Sonora during the Rim Fire
View VideoGroveland, CA — The Forest Service reports a change in category will help firefighters battle the Rim Fire. The blaze had been categorized as a Type Two Incident Management Team fire. It has now been bumped up to a Type One.
Forest Service Spokesperson Jerry Snyder says, “That means for us an increase in resources. The team is larger and has more expertise. Most important for us is it allows a higher priority when it comes to requesting resources.”
There are 711 firefighters battling the blaze that includes 13 crews. The acreage still sits at 11,000 and threatening 2,500 structures. There is no containment.
There have been advisory evacuations today. The latest were this evening around 6:30 at the Berkeley Family Camp which is east of the fire. Several children were taken out by bus and nearly 35 families left on their own, Evacuations took place today along Ferretti Road, Clements Road, and at Camp Tawonga.
Other areas still under the advisory evacuation notices from yesterday are Buck Meadows, San Jose Family Camp, Rainbow Pool, Yosemite Inn, Early Intake, Evergreen Lodge, Packard Canyon and the Spinning Wheel Forest Service facility. Officials have put in place a reverse 911 system to notify residents that are under an evacuation advisory.
The Mother Lode Fair Grounds in Sonora have been turned into and evacuation center for people displaced by the Rim Fire. It is open until further notice. Click here for an earlier story on the shelter.
Tuolumne County Transit buses are staged at Mary Laveroni Park in Groveland, in the event that South County residents impacted need transportation to the evacuation center. Tuolumne County Transit will run fixed routes tomorrow and have limited one dollar rides.
Because of the smoke, road closures and evacuations….The Big Oak Flat-Groveland Unified School District has cancelled classes for Wednesday. Highway 120 is still closed and there are reports the heat from the fire has damaged gaurd rails on the highway which could delay its opening.
A special thanks to our community news partners J. Weisenberger, Jerry & Jason Tannhauser, Steffanie Reed, Nathan Grinsell David Wheat, and Darrick Shaw for sending in photos of the Rim Fire.
