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Willow Fire near North Fork 90% contained

By Troy Pope

tpope@fresnobee.com
The southern portion of the Willow fire burned close to the dozer line created for the 2001 North Fork fire, seen along the bottom right corner. The fire is now 85% contained and full containment is expected by Aug. 15. Read more at www.fresnobee.com
The southern portion of the Willow fire burned close to the dozer line created for the 2001 North Fork fire, seen along the bottom right corner. The fire is now 85% contained and full containment is expected by Aug. 15. Read more at www.fresnobee.com ERIC PAUL ZAMORA ezamora@fresnobee.com

The Willow fire burning near North Fork is now 90% contained and has burned 5,702 acres, fire officials said Wednesday.

The fire has been burning since July 25 and has cost $18.3 million to fight. With the fire winding down, there are 864 personnel fighting the blaze — well below the more than 2,000 who were assigned at its peak.

“We aren’t expecting the fire perimeter to grow any further,” U.S. Forest Service spokesman Raj Singh said. “The weather is cooler. It’s overcast with mild temperatures and that’s definitely helping.”

Evacuations ended Tuesday morning, and officials estimate that the fire will reach 100% containment by 6 p.m. on Aug. 15.

Troy Pope: 559-441-6442, @troycpope

This story was originally published August 5, 2015 at 7:47 PM with the headline "Willow Fire near North Fork 90% contained."

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