About 300 miles (480 km) to the south firefighters made steady progress on Wednesday to contain a deadly wildfire burning in rugged, drought-stricken terrain north of Los Angeles. About a dozen exotic animals displaced by the blaze began returning to a sanctuary in the Los Angeles suburb of Sylmar on Wednesday. Some 3,500 firefighters battling the blaze may get a reprieve from the hot, blustery weather on Thursday when temperatures are forecast to ease to the upper 70s (25-26 degrees Centigrade) with light winds. Some 3,000 firefighters battling the so-called Sand Fire in the Angeles National Forest extended containment lines around 40 percent of the 38,350-acre (15,520 hectare) blaze on Wednesday, according to fire information officer Sam Wu. A private contractor operating a bulldozer to help fight the fire was killed on Tuesday when his rig overturned.

Source: bd News24 July 28, 2016 10:18 UTC