Chinese camp: Wildfire burns through historic California gold mining town, forcing evacuation

A quick-moving wildfire scorched thousands of acres Tuesday and burned homes in a California Gold Rush town settled around 1850 by Chinese miners who were driven out of a nearby camp

A quick-moving wildfire scorched thousands of acres Tuesday and burned homes in a California Gold Rush town settled around 1850 by Chinese miners who were driven out of a nearby camp.

The fire rapidly grew to 6.25 square miles in size, forcing the evacuation of the Chinese Camp Town and surrounding highways, according to CalFire, the state’s chief fire agency. There were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths, but the fire remained uncontained Tuesday night

At least five homes were burning in the rural town, which has a mix of freestanding and mobile homes.

Outside one house on Tuesday evening, seven people quickly moved large tree branches away from the structure and shoveled sand onto the fire in a desperate attempt to keep the blaze from spreading from the house next door. They worked for about 30 minutes until firefighters arrived. An RV on the property was damaged by the fire.

Residents work to stop flames from a burning home from spreading to a neighboring house as the 6-5 Fire burns through the Chinese Camp community of Tuolumne County, Calif., on Tuesday.Noah Berger / APFire officials have requested additional resources such as fire engines, dozers and an aircraft.