A wind-driven fire continued to scorch thousands of acres 60 miles east of San Francisco on Sunday, prompting residents to flee their homes and the closure of two major freeways near the central California city of Tracy. The blaze was still spreading, officials said. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection reported that the fire erupted Saturday afternoon in the grassy hills managed by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, one of the country's key centers for nuclear weapons science and technology. By Sunday afternoon, the fire had devoured some 20 square miles and was only 15% contained, the AP reports.
Authorities said the research center was not under immediate threat from the blaze, dubbed the Corral Fire. Nevertheless, authorities ordered some residents to leave the area and set up evacuation centers. A Lawrence Livermore spokesperson Paul Rhien said early Sunday that the fire had moved away from the center. It was not immediately known how many structures had been destroyed by the fire. California firefighters aided by aircraft battled the wind-driven wildfire that continued not only burning but spreading early Sunday in an area straddling the San Francisco Bay Area and central California, authorities said. "Strong winds and dry grass have made it difficult for firefighters to contain," Cal Fire said in a Facebook post.
Interstate 580, which connects the San Francisco Bay Area to San Joaquin County in central California, was closed from the Alameda County line to the Stanislaus County Line. SR 132 was also closed from I-580 to SR 33, the state Department of Transportation said in a statement. A temporary evacuation point was established at Larch Clover Community Center in Tracy. Sunday's high temperature for Tracy was expected to be 85 degrees Fahrenheit, with no rain in the forecast, but hotter conditions are forecast for later in the week. Wind gusts of up to 45mph lashed the region Saturday night, the National Weather Service said.
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