Reno fires knocked down; Cole blazes contained

Despite several lighting strikes in the hills west of Carson City and near Mount Rose plus increased winds, no new fires were reported Thursday afternoon.

"It was about 2:30 or 3 p.m. when it came in really strong. There was some lighting, but not as much as we expected," said fire information officer Jenny Scanland.

The lighting and rain was accompanied by only a quick sprinkle of rain along the ridge, she said.

"We've had no fires reported yet, but we're watching."

Meanwhile, the four fires of the Cole Complex burning along Highway 395 near the Marine Corps housing complex an hour south were declared 100 percent contained. The cost to date for those fires was listed at $1,563,505. They burned 2,833 acres.

There was no word on whether the children whose cooking fire started a blaze nearby would be charged. The Mono County district attorney's office is determining whether charges should be filed.

Resources from the Cole fires were being pulled from the scene Thursday and sent north to fight the Verdi fires northeast of Reno. Those four fires had burned a total of more than 1,200 acres by Thursday evening.

A total of 387 firefighters and five helicopters were working the blazes.

"They're cooling it down very well with their air power. It's a total air show today, but they do have 13 hand crews out there," said fire information officer Christie Kalkowski.

At 7 p.m., she said staff had made "great progress," despite 15 mph winds, and only the fire's western flank was still active. Estimated total containment is 6 p.m. Sunday.

The largest of the fires was still only 30 percent contained Thursday. The fires, sparked by lightning on Wednesday, continued to send up a pall of smoke that drifted south along the Sierra some 30 miles to Carson City.

One of the fires in the complex initially threatened a subdivision north of the town of Verdi, 10 miles west of Reno.

On Wednesday, the flames came within several hundred yards of about 50 homes, but never posed any immediate danger to the structures, Kalkowski said. There were no evacuations.