A fast-moving wildfire fanned by powerful winds has forced about 42,000 people from their homes in Reno, Nevada, while officials ordered most schools in the area to stay closed.
Another 45,000 residents have been warned to prepare for possible evacuation, Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve told CNN as the blaze threatened communities west of the city.
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Authorities said every school in Washoe County, where Reno is located, would remain closed except for one.
The Hawk Fire started on Saturday and had spread across 6,091 hectares by yesterday evening, displaying “extreme fire behavior”, according to InciWeb, the US government’s wildfire tracking website.
No deaths have been reported. At least six people have been injured, including three first responders, while several homes on mountaintops have been destroyed, local media reported.
Officials have classified the fire as “human-caused” but have not disclosed what sparked it.
About 800 people are taking part in the firefighting operation, according to a local fire rescue service, including crews sent from Australia and New Zealand.
Images shared by the service on X showed flames and enormous columns of smoke rising from the mountains overlooking Reno.
Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo has declared a state of emergency in Washoe County.
His order warned that the Hawk Fire “is spreading quickly and threatening homes and structures”.
Local fire chief Richard Edwards told residents to be prepared to leave without delay if evacuation orders were issued.
“The Hawk Fire is a very dynamic incident for us as it’s being driven by the winds,” he said.
“The wind-driven fires move very rapidly into our residential areas,” he added.
“If you have been told to evacuate, please don’t wait!” Ms Schieve, Reno’s mayor, said in a statement posted on social media.
Reno lies in northwestern Nevada, close to the California border and the popular Lake Tahoe resort region in the Sierra Nevada mountains.
