MARIPOSA – Get the family ready for a swell long weekend, as the Mariposa County Fair is in town for Labor Day, starting Friday, Aug. 29 and running through Monday, Sept. 1 at the Mariposa County Fairgrounds. This 76th edition of the fair, billed as “Boots, Buckles and Barrels of Fun,” will include carnival rides, food and drinks, livestock shows, ...

RENO, NV – Researchers at Nevada’s Desert Research Institute (DRI) want to hear your wildfire stories, and they’ve provided an app for your smartphone to do it. As part of a research collaborative with the Wildland Fire Management Research, Development and Application (RD&A) program, the newly launched “Fire Stories” project is an effort to understand extreme and unexpected wildfire behavior ...

OAKHURST – The Junction Fire is now 90% contained at 612 acres. Crews were demobilized throughout the day, returning to their units all over the state, or being reassigned to fires in other areas. There are now 885 personnel assigned to the incident, with 45 engines, 29 fire crews, 9 water tenders and 5 dozers. There will be no helicopters ...

OAKHURST – The 612-acre Junction Fire is now 75% contained, and crews continue to make substantial progress on line reinforcement. Hot spots are still present throughout the burn area, and crews are focusing their efforts on getting those eliminated and mopping up 300 feet inside the line.

MADERA COUNTY – The Courtney Fire, Junction Fire, and the French Fire serve as critical reminders to everyone to be prepared before disaster strikes. Sheriff John Anderson reminds all residents to register for MCAlert and to be aware that disaster can strike within seconds. Be it natural or man-made, everyone should always keep a to-do and what-to-take list at hand. ...

OAKHURST – Firefighters continued to make good progress on the Junction Fire today, improving containment lines and doing aggressive mop-up on interior hot spots. The number of damaged and destroyed structures has been updated and increased, as a damage inspection team surveyed the burn area to assess the property loss.

OAKHURST – Since I hadn’t really left the house since Monday when the fire broke out, this seemed like a good day to drop my no-school-today teenager at the movies and drive north to see what was happening in the aftermath of the Junction Fire, a beast that screamed through Oakhurst with a rate of speed and intensity that had ...

OAKHURST – Cal Fire is advising that all road closures and evacuations are being lifted for the Junction Fire. Road 222 and the east side of Highway 41 are being reopened. Area schools that are closed today will be open for business tomorrow. There is a large amount of fire equipment still in the area, and residents are advised to ...

OAKHURST – Firefighters have stopped the progress of the Junction Fire at 612 acres, and reached 40% containment. Crews will be working today to strengthen lines and attack hot spots throughout the burn area. At the morning briefing today, there was discussion of expected thunderstorms and rain over the crest of the Sierra, but neither is expected to impact the ...

OAKHURST – Firefighters continued to make steady progress today on the Junction Fire, which is estimated at 612 acres with 35% containment. Aggressive firefighting, in addition to lower temperatures, a rise in humidity and less wind provided an opportunity to increase containment lines, and secure those already in place.