A fast-growing wildfire that broke out over the weekend in Northern California, fueled by parched lands and high winds, prompted evacuations on Sunday and sent ash spewing over a wide area of the region, officials said.
The so-called County Fire, located about 75 miles (120 kms) northeast of San Francisco, has blazed through around 22,000 acres (8,900 hectares) and was zero percent contained as of Sunday afternoon.
The sky turned orange in parts of the San Francisco Bay area due to the blaze, with many residents waking up to a thin dusting of ash on windows, cars and lawns.
Residents in some rural areas of Yolo County were ordered to leave their homes as the flames advanced, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.
"It's going to be headed into some populated areas of small communities in the near future if it is not curtailed," Cal Fire spokesman Scott McLean said in an interview.