Slater and Devil Fires have burned over 162,000 acres, some evacuations downgraded

DEL NORTE COUNTY, Calif. (KIEM) — The Slater and Devil Fires continue to burn up in Del Norte and Siskiyou Counties, but some evacuations are being downgraded.

In Del Norte County, communities along Patrick Creek up to the California-Oregon border have been reduced to an evacuation warning. Gasquet, Big Flat, and Hiouchi are no longer under an evacuation warning. Crews are working to clear roadways in the fire area.

“What we’re trying to do here is clean up some of the hazard trees and all this material that’s going to cause problems along the roadways here. This is processor in behind me. What they’re doing is working up cleaning alongside the edge of the road. He’s going out about 30 feet,” according to Jeremy Hamilton, a task force leader for the incident.

The Slater Fire is 154,145 acres with 45% containment. The Devil Fire is 8,410 acres and is 20% contained. So far, 440 structures have been destroyed with close to 1,700 more threatened.