Plumas County fire consumes 29,000 acres; smoky skies persist

Plumas County's Moonlight wildfire continued to burn late Thursday, charring 29,000 acres by evening and sending a pall of smoke over the Sacramento region for a second day.

More than 2,270 firefighters are either on the scene or en route to the blaze, which was only 8 percent contained. No homes had been lost as of Thursday evening, but three other had structures -- the foundation of a home under construction, a travel trailer and a shed -- had burned.

Helping the effort from the air were helicopters and a DC 10, which made two drops during the day.

The fire, which flickered to life on Labor Day, has triggered the mandatory evacuation of 100 residences, while voluntary evacuation has been recommended for 200 more, said Ron deHart of the U.S. Forest Service.

"I can't imagine we'd be done in a week -- there's just too much fire," deHart said.

He said the biggest concern are the extremely dry forest and rugged terrain. Because of the challenging circumstances, firefighters have not been able to reach huge swaths of the fire's eastern flank.

The fire is being managed jointly by the U.S. Forest Service and CalFIRE. Firefighters are camped outside of Westwood in the community of Pine Town.

Smoke from the blaze continues to pollute the air in the Sacramento region, more than 150 miles south of the fire. Air quality officials say that particulates in the air make it unhealthful for sensitive people: children, the elderly and people with respiratory or heart disease. They should curtail outdoor activity.

Placer County officials issued a warning for residents to avoid exercise outdoors and the National Weather Service said Wednesday afternoon that residents with health problems should stay inside. Some schools curtailed activities for students with lung or health problems.

"In a nutshell, if you can see or smell smoke, you should limit outdoor physical activities, and strongly consider canceling outdoor sporting events and other group physical activities," Placer County Health Officer Dr. Richard Burton said in an advisory issued Wednesday afternoon.

Other officials said individuals should use common sense when deciding whether to venture out for strenuous activity.

"I can't tell you 'yes' or 'no,' but if you're smelling some smoke it's not good for children to be out there," said Lori Kobza of the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, who fielded phone calls from coaches, principals and parents across the region. "If you smell smoke, it's there."

The smoke turned the morning sun a deep orange hue and residents reported finding ash coating their vehicles, but officials said the conditions would likely pose problems only for people with breathing problems or other health ailments.

Concerns were exacerbated by the air quality charts on the sparetheair.com Web site, which until early afternoon had shown that parts of Sacramento, Yolo and Placer counties were recording healthy levels.

Those readings were from monitors at ground level, too low to detect the plume of smoke far overhead until later in the afternoon when it began to settle in lower.

By about 4 p.m., air quality levels around the region were reclassified on the Web site -- to color yellow -- showing a moderate risk for sensitive residents, including the elderly, pregnant women, and children under 14 whose lungs are still developing.

"We definitely have smoky conditions in the Valley," Kobza said, "and we always err on the side of caution when it comes to particulate matter -- i.e., pollution."

Officials in the San Juan Unified School District advised children predisposed to breathing problems such as asthma to stay indoors and refrain from attending physical education classes, said spokesman Trent Allen.

Sacramento City Unified School District did not issue such warnings.

The smoky conditions, which were reported across the foothills and the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys, were forecast to continue through midday today or when the winds shift.