APPLE FIRE PROMPTS EVACUATION OF 7,000 NEAR LOS ANGELES

Firefighters at the weekend struggled to get a handle on the Apple wildfire some 75 miles east of Los Angeles and fire officials were forced to order the evacuation of 7,000 people. The fire broke out Friday as two separate blazes that soon merged near the community of Cherry Valley. By Sunday, the Apple fire had charred more than 20,500 acres and destroyed one home and two other structures, with zero containment. Thousands of homes remained threatened. Battling the blaze was made difficult by hot and dry conditions and the “very steep, rugged hillsides” on the northern and eastern flanks of the fire, the US Forest Service said. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has not yet determined the cause of the blaze.