Coulterville evacuated from Mariposa wildfire

The town of Coulterville is evacuating as the Detwiler fire in Mariposa County burns out of control.

The Mariposa Sheriff’s Office issued evacuation orders for Coulterville and the surrounding area before noon Wednesday.

Residents and businesses along Highway 132 from Highway 49 North to Windy Point and Highway 49 North to Oakridge Road all are ordered to evacuate.

Evacuation also orders include residents living near Greeley Hill Road from Dogtown Road in Coulterville to Dogtown Roadd near Bowers Cave in Greeley Hill and all roads between Greeley Hill Road and Texas Hill Road.

A Red Cross evacuation and small animal shelter is located at the Groveland Community Center at 18720 8th St.

Another shelter was set up at the Sonora Fair Grounds 220 Southgate Rd.

Additional Red Cross shelters are located at the Oakhurst Evangelical Free Church, Sierra Presbyterian Church in Oakhurst, Mountain Christian Center in Oakhurst and the Cesar E. Chavez Middle School in Planada.

The evacuation orders come a day after the town of Mariposa was evacuated.

More than 4,500 structures, including homes and businesses, are threatened by the Detwiler fire, Calfire has reported. The fire sparked Sunday afternoon in Hunters Valley near Lake McClure rapidly grew to more than 45,000 acres by Wednesday. The fire was 7 percent contained Wednesday morning.

Eight structures have been destroyed and one damaged, though details about the structures are not available.

Multiple roads are closed, including Highway 140 and Highway 49 in multiple places.

Yosemite National Park remains open, and Pacific Gas & Electric restored power to Yosemite Valley last night after on and off outages, said Scott Gediman, a park spokesman. Campgrounds, hotels and lodges remain open.

Visitors are advised to take Highway 120 into the park from the east and west and Highway 41 from the south. The park is not accessible from Highway 140.

Gediman said the air in Yosemite Valley is smokey, and visibility is limited.

This story is developing.

This story was originally published July 19, 2017 at 11:24 AM with the headline "Coulterville evacuated from Mariposa wildfire."