A burned car sits on the side of the road after being consumed by the Rim Fire on August 25, 2013 near Groveland, California
One week after a wildfire swept through Yosemite National Park, threatening to blanket San Francisco’s main water reservoir in ash and destroy hydroelectric transmission lines, fire officials reported that the blaze had been contained in the areas that mattered the most. “It looks great out there,” a fire official told the Associated Press, “No concerns.”
The 252-square-mile blaze, which astronauts can see from space, according to NBC News, is the biggest wildfire on record in Sierra Nevada. Nearly 3,700 firefighters have been battling the 300-foot tall flames. They have cleared underbrush, bulldozed firebreaks, and set sprinklers on ancient sequoias in the fire’s path, Fox News reports. Fire officials now say that 20 percent of the blaze has been contained, a significant jump over 7 percent as of yesterday.
Nonetheless, the fire has continued to spread in new directions, threatening 4,500 structures and destroying 23, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
MORE: 5 Tools for Keeping Track of California’s Monster Yosemite Wildfire