The fire was “extremely active” Thursday, making substantial runs up a canyon and fueled by hot winds and high temperatures, a Cal Fire spokesman said. “Fire is burning to the east. Fire has jumped across the river into Calarveras County”. Friends said Mark and Wendy Crooks lived at the home with their two sons, ages six and nine. Ash fall continues to blanket Amador, Calaveras and Tuolumne counties as far south as the city of Sonora.

Update 6:53 p.m.

Several rural communities were under evacuation orders, though it was not immediately clear how many people were forced to flee their homes.

The Butte hearth began at 2:26 p.m. close to Butte Mountain Street. The website show the extent of the fire along with the towns involved. “There are still a lot of houses and homes in the area that we are doing structure defense on”, said England.

Numerous firefighters battling this blaze have been on the job since the fire first was reported Wednesday afternoon, but more personnel are expected to arrive tonight.

Three evacuation centers have been set up at the Jackson Rancheria Hotel in conjunction with the Red Cross, the San Andreas Town Hall and the Calaveras County Fairgrounds in Angels Camp.

The so-called Butte Fire, which erupted on Wednesday east of the city of Jackson, about an hour’s drive southeast of the state capital, Sacramento, grew to 14,700 acres (5,949 hectares)by Thursday evening, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

As the fire spreads over a swath of land that includes dry grass, trees and manzanita, residents who live along Amador Lane, Charamuga Ranch and Electra roads have been asked to evacuate. The FM radio station KPCC also has a nicely designed fire tracker with excellent graphics and information.