Ferguson Fire has jumped Highway 41, has been burning inside Yosemite, officials say

The Ferguson Fire jumped Highway 41 on Friday afternoon, fire officials confirmed, the same day Yosemite Valley evacuated all non-essential workers.

Cal Fire spokeswoman Natasha Fouts-Noble said the fire has been burning inside Yosemite National Park for a few days as crews have conducted defensive burns along Wawona Road, also known as Highway 41, to try to contain the fire.

She was not able to give a precise location of where the fire crossed Highway 41.

Fouts-Noble said the fire’s latest shift is not proving to be an imminent danger for Badger Pass Ski Area, where firefighters and other camp workers are staged in a satellite base camp.

Aircraft and firefighters worked all day Friday, containing a spot fire over the Merced River near the Crane Creek drainage southwest of Foresta, fire officials said.

The Ferguson Fire burned 77,207 acres by Friday evening and remained only 41 percent contained as the closure of Yosemite Valley remained in effect through Aug. 5, authorities reported.

Residents of Yosemite Valley were told they had to evacuate by noon Friday.

Officials said Yosemite Valley was “not threatened by the fire at this time, but a mandatory evacuation has been issued due to multiple hazards along El Portal Road, Big Oak Flat Road, and Wawona Road, as well as power outages in Yosemite Valley.”

A Red Cross shelter is located at New Life Christian Fellowship, 5089 Cole Road, Mariposa.

This story was originally published August 3, 2018 at 5:47 PM.