Nevada Wildfire Closes Highway to Lake Tahoe

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) -- A wildfire burned more than 1,100 acres along the Sierra range, closing the highway from Carson City to Lake Tahoe, forcing evacuations and threatening 100 homes and businesses before firefighters got the better of it.

About 150 campers and counselors were evacuated from the Clear Creek Youth Camp near Carson City before fire officials announced Tuesday night the fire was no longer a threat. They expected it to be fully contained by Wednesday morning.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or property damage in the fire near Carson City. The Nevada Division of Forestry reported Tuesday evening the fire was 85 percent contained and was expected to be fully contained by Wednesday morning.

``We throw the world at it. You can always turn them around,'' said division spokeswoman Kelli Baratti.

Also Tuesday, a prescribed burn in Arizona escaped control lines and forced the evacuation of about 15 homes. The 4,500-acre fire was within a half-mile of homes in an area about three miles north of Cherry, officials said.

In the eastern part of Arizona, a 10,618-acre fire about 15 miles from Alpine was brought under control on Tuesday.

In Alaska, a 10,000-acre fire burned through the Goodpaster Valley southeast of Fairbanks, threatening a handful of recreational cabins.

The fire began with a lightning strike Saturday. Firefighters returning by helicopter Sunday night said they could not contain the fire because there was no nearby water source.

The National Interagency Fire Center said the number and acreage of large wildfires nationally is running about 30 percent below average. However, the agency said much of the Interior West, Northwest and portions of California and the Northern Rockies still are expected to have an above-normal fire season.

Two large fires are burning within the Gila National Forest in southwestern New Mexico. One, sparked by lightning April 17, has burned 51,000 acres, said Loretta Ray, a spokeswoman national forest. That fire is contained. Another, also sparked by lightning, has burned about 15,000 acres.

``They're low intensity fires. It's been a good opportunity to allow fire to resume its role in the ecosystem,'' Ray said. ``It's a real challenge for us to explain to people that it's not a real catastrophic fire danger.''