Authorities on Tuesday ordered new evacuations along a strip of coast near the tourist town of Big Sur where firefighters were battling one of the hundreds of lightning-sparked wildfires across Northern California, according to AP. The mandatory evacuation order covered a roughly 15-mile (25-kilometer) stretch where firefighters planned a controlled burn to help block a wildfire that has blackened about 74 square miles (192 square kilometers), said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Rolf Larsen. The fire near Big Sur started in the Los Padres National Forest just over a week ago and was caused by lightning. It has continued to grow this week and as of Tuesday was just 3 percent contained _ the same percentage as last week _ although it has expanded away from populated areas. About 200 people were ordered to evacuate an area south of Big Sur. Occupants of at least 75 homes evacuated from the same general area earlier, and have not been allowed to return. A second fire in the Los Padres National Forest, farther inland and in rugged, mountainous terrain, has burned 127 square miles (329 square kilometers) since it started about three weeks ago, Larsen said. It was 95 percent contained.
