Can Mariposa be saved from fire?

Another town evacuated Wednesday from the advancing flames of the Detwiler Fire, which scorched more than 45,000 acres and grew into one of the largest blazes now burning in the state.

The Mariposa Sheriff’s Office issued evacuation orders for Coulterville before noon. The town of 200 lies north of Mariposa on Highway 49.

The evacuation orders come a day after Mariposa was evacuated.

More than 4,500 structures, including homes and businesses, were threatened by the Detwiler fire, CalFire reported. The Detwiler Fire, now the third-largest blaze in California, sparked Sunday afternoon in Hunters Valley near Lake McClure. The fire was 7 percent contained Wednesday morning.

CalFire officials on Wednesday couldn’t say whether the town of Mariposa would be spared from the fast-moving blaze.

“I really can’t answer that,” said CalFire Capt. Steve Kaufmann, a public information officer assigned to the wildfire. “Right now we are working one day at a time.”

The fire grew to more than 45,000 acres overnight and was 7 percent contained. More than 2,000 firefighters are battling the blaze that sparked Sunday afternoon, which Kaufmann described as “volatile” and “erratic.”

“Some firefighters say they’re seeing fire behavior they’ve never seen in their career,” he said.

Eight structures have been destroyed and one has been damaged but authorities haven’t confirmed whether the buildings were homes or sheds. Teams are working on damage assessments.

Jaime Williams, another CalFire public information officer from Mariposa, said fire crews are doing whatever they can to protect historic Mariposa.

“I know they’re going to work really hard and put as many resources on it as possible,” she said. “We’re working hard to get ahead of this thing, but there’s a lot of obstacles.”

Winds, dense brush and dead trees in the foothills are creating an abundance of fuel for the fire, further hampering firefighting efforts. Inflamed grasses often produce flames anywhere from 2-6 feet tall, and other brush produced flames 25 feet tall, firefighters reported.

Spot fires constantly popped up, and the fire didn’t rest long at night as temperatures cooled.

Fire crews will continue rolling into Merced to support firefighting efforts.

“The state of California has one of the best master mutual aid plans,” Kaufmann said. “Into all hours of the night, we saw strike teams from all over the state.”

Meanwhile, the Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office continued issuing new evacuation orders throughout the day. The town of Coulterville and residents living near Greeley Hill Road were evacuated about midday Wednesday.

Red Cross housed more than 250 people in multiple shelters Tuesday night, said Jessica Piffero, a spokeswoman for Red Cross. By Wednesday afternoon, six Red Cross shelters were established.

CalFire’s command post was moved from Mariposa to the Merced County Fairgrounds on Tuesday and more equipment and firefighter support services were set up on Wednesday. The fairgrounds is not equipped to house evacuees or animals. CalFire is providing its firefighters with all necessary services, such as shower facilities, places to sleep, food and more.

Yosemite National Park remains open and Pacific Gas & Electric restored power to Yosemite Valley on Tuesday night after a string of 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 smoky and visibility is limited.

This story was originally published July 19, 2017 at 5:48 PM with the headline "Can Mariposa be saved from fire?."