Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, left, and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, right, talk with Cal Fire Capt. Chris Guidice, left, and Firefighter Brandon White in Markleeville, Ca. on Wednesday, June 24, 2015. The lightning-caused Washington fire has grown to nearly 17,000 acres since Friday. (AP Photo/Cathleen Allison)
Containment went up to 15 percent, and acreage went down, on the Washington Fire burning near Markleeville in Alpine County.
According to the latest update, the fire acreage was revised to 16,490 acres, according to the Thursday evening update.
The fire size was determined by more accurate mapping.
No buildings have been damaged, but Markleeville is under a voluntary evacuation warning, according to the Bureau of Land Management. Several campgrounds were evacuated earlier in the week, and two highways have been closed.
About 900 firefighters are battling the blaze. The fire is partially contained.
The fire was started by a lightning strike earlier this month that didn’t start to show itself until 7 p.m. Friday. By Saturday evening, high winds drove the fire into a frenzy, causing it to quadruple in size and then quintuple.
Highway 89 from Highway 395 over Monitor Pass to the junction with Highway 4 is closed. Highway 4 is closed from Markleeville to Ebbetts Pass.
Indian Creek and Turtle Rock campground are closed. However, the Pacific Crest Trail remains open.
While crews continue to fight the Washington fire, a red flag warning has been issued for 1-9 p.m. Saturday for thunderstorms and strong winds.
The National Weather Service announced thunderstorms and high temperatures are expected to arrive this weekend.
A fire weather watch is in place from Saturday evening through Sunday.
Smoke from the fire continues to spread a haze to Carson City and Carson Valley. The air quality in Carson City was unhealthy in the morning hours, but was good by mid-afternoon.
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