Firefighters Make Progress on Alaska Wildfire

Firefighters are making progress on an Alaska wildfire that has claimed 51 homes.

Nearly 450 firefighters working the fire about 70 miles north of Alaska’s largest city brought it to 46 percent containment Monday, up from 10 percent on Friday.

Residents along a roughly 10-mile stretch of the Parks Highway, the main thoroughfare between Anchorage and Denali National Park, were allowed back into their homes Monday after being ordered to evacuate after the fire started Aug. 17.

The fire has burned 5.2 sq. miles. The cause is under investigation, but the Alaska Division of Forestry said it was human caused.

Besides homes, three businesses and 84 outbuildings have been destroyed.

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Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Wildfire