Several wildfires sweeping through northern California's Sierra Nevada mountains have destroyed 10 houses and 22 outbuildings and are threatening thousands of other structures, according to The Associated Press.
No casualties or injuries have been reported, fire service spokesman Tom Piranio said, but 2,800 people had been evacuated from their homes, the AP reported.
Firefighters had only recently been able to enter burned areas to report on the damage after wet weather helped them make progress over the weekend, according to the AP.
The blaze began Sept. 13, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or CalFire, the AP reported. About 12,000 homes and 9,000 other structures were still under threat.
The King Fire burned more than 82,000 acres of land in the El Dorado National Forest and Tahoe National Forest, according to the AP. The fire areas are both northeast of Sacramento, which is popular with outdoor enthusiasts.
By Sunday night, firefighters had contained 17 percent of the blaze, up from 10 percent earlier in the day, CalFire reported, the AP said.
Two Ironman triathlon events scheduled for Sunday at nearby Lake Tahoe were canceled over the weekend due to exceedingly poor air quality caused by smoke from the fire, according to the AP.
On Monday crews attempted to control the fire threatening thousands of homes as they braced for strong, erratic winds threatening to empower the blaze, according to the AP.
Warmer temperatures, low humidity and winds of up to 30 mph could increase fire activity, state fire spokesman Capt. Tom Piranio said, the AP reported.
"This could set up some potential fire growth similar to what we experienced when it grew exponentially last week," Piranio said. "We are working very aggressively to maintain the contingency lines."
Last week, police arrested 37-year-old Wayne Allen Huntsman on charges of arson, accusing him of starting the fire, one of six major blazes burning across California during the state's third year of devastating drought, the AP reported.
