National forests closed as California wildfires surge

The U.S. Forest Service announced Thursday that beginning on Aug. 22 it will close nine national forests from near Lake Tahoe at the Nevada border on the east all the way west to Six Rivers National Forest, which stretches north to the Oregon border and contains more than 1 million acres of land alone.

Winds and 'fire clouds' feed California's largest blaze

Gusts also hindered containment efforts and the problem could get worse with the predicted arrival of pyrocumulus clouds — literally meaning “fire clouds ” — which can bring lightning and the risk of new ignitions.