New wildfire breaks out in California

The Silverado Fire in Orange County, Calif., began just after dawn on Monday and grew to 7,200 acres by the evening. Authorities ordered some 100,000 people in Southern California to evacuate. Two firefighters battling the blaze suffered second and third-degree burns. Southern California Edison utility company is investigating whether one of its equipment started the fire.

What about the rest of the state? To keep the dry wind from sparking more wildfires, Pacific Gas & Electric cut the power to about 1 million people in Northern California. State officials warn the region could see some of the strongest winds so far this year. A weather station north of San Francisco recorded a gust of 89 mph late Sunday. By Monday, the wind slowed to just over 60 mph, with more strong gusts likely later that night, the National Weather Service said. The agency said Southern California could face resumed Santa Ana winds between 50 and 80 mph on Tuesday morning.

Dig deeper: Track the latest developments on the Cal Fire website.

Editor’s note: WORLD has updated this report since its initial posting.