Yosemite Fire Burns Area The Size Of Chicago

Yosemite National Park, California (CNN) — A northern California wildfire grew to historic proportions early Monday, becoming the 14th largest in state history.

The sprawling Rim Fire, which has devoured nearly 144,000 acres, has scorched an area about the size of the city of Chicago while more than 3,400 firefighters try to rein it in.

Susan Loesch and Curtis Evans just started settling into their second home in California’s Sierra foothills a few months ago. Now, they’re worried it could go up in smoke as the massive wildfire spreads.

“This is kind of a little paradise up here for us. … To think this would all be gone would be devastating,” Evans told CNN Sunday.

Cradling their chihuahua, Cuervo, they prepared to leave the area on Sunday.

Source: CNN