World·NewA fast-moving wildfire that jumped over fire trucks and made it difficult for crews to reach hot spots destroyed homes in northwest Reno, Nevada, on Sunday. Shifting winds challenged firefighters trying to bring it under control, and authorities urged some 90,000 people to evacuate.Hawk Fire began Saturday and quickly grew to more than 60 square kilometresThe Associated Press · Posted: Aug 24, 2026 4:58 AM EDT | Last Updated: 17 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 5 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.At least six people — three first responders and three civilians — have been injured in the Hawk Fire, which began Saturday. (Trevor Bexon/Getty Images)A fast-moving wildfire that jumped over fire trucks and made it difficult for crews to reach hot spots destroyed homes in northwest Reno, Nevada, on Sunday. Shifting winds challenged firefighters trying to bring it under control, and authorities urged some 90,000 people to evacuate.At least six people — three first responders and three civilians — were injured, officials said. Officials said the fire was "human-caused" but did not provide details on how they reached that conclusion, or whether it was intentionally set or accidental.The Hawk Fire began Saturday and quickly grew to more than 60 square kilometres as it spread across the Peavine Peak area of the Humboldt–Toiyabe National Forest, where rugged foothills are ringed by homes and businesses near the California state line.'Please get out'Some 42,000 residents have been ordered evacuated as the "GO NOW" zone expanded, reaching the edge of the University of Nevada. An additional 45,000 people were in the adjacent evacuation warning zone. Authorities implored all of them to leave and be prepared to stay away for several days, because shifting and strengthening winds were expected to make the fire even more unpredictable."Please get out if you can right now," Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam said.Some 42,000 residents have been ordered evacuated and an additional 45,000 people were in the adjacent evacuation warning zone. Authorities have implored all of them to leave. (Natalie Wainwright/Reuters)Cari Kieffer said a video posted on social media showed her house entirely burned down, with only a scorched basketball hoop still standing.Destructive wildfires prompt evacuations in Washington stateSpokane wildfires displace thousands, but crews make progress containing flames"I woke up this morning and just started crying — all my kids, they lost everything," Kieffer said Sunday. "We lost all our stuff. Everything we own is gone."Kieffer had been watching her son's football game Saturday when she learned that their home on the outskirts of Reno was in the evacuation zone. An app the family used to track the fire's progress had been lagging significantly behind its actual location, she said, so they thought firefighters had kept the blaze from their neighbourhood.Instead, Kieffer, her husband and their four children ages 3 to 16 raced to save their dogs and whatever possessions they could retrieve. Ash rained down, and the wind blew like an oven blast from a wall of flames advancing down the hillside toward their neighborhood, she said."I kept looking outside and the flames just kept getting closer and closer every time I looked," Kieffer said. "I was like, we gotta go like now."Eyes watering and throat burning, Kieffer grabbed a handful of clothes, a Bible, her wedding photos and her mother's ashes. In the frenzy, as firefighters yelled at her family to leave immediately, she said she forgot her family's birth certificates and was unable to salvage her childhood photos.National Guard mobilizedThe family drove to a friend's home but had to evacuate again. They learned later Saturday evening that their own home was gone.Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo declared a state of emergency in Washoe County and mobilized the Nevada National Guard to support aerial firefighting with two helicopter crews as well as 60 troops to help police safeguard evacuated neighborhoods. Also responding were 800 fire personnel.Entire community of Summerland, B.C., ordered to evacuate due to fast-moving wildfireFrance wildfires creep toward wine city of BordeauxNearly 10,000 customers were without power in Washoe County on Sunday, down from 60,000 on Saturday. Portions of U.S. Route 395, a major north-south highway, were closed due to the fire. Reno, with more than 280,000 residents, is the largest city in Nevada outside of metro Las Vegas.Washoe County emergency officials opened the Reno-Sparks Convention Center to evacuees, but said they couldn't bring their pets — small animals and large animals were to be left at two other locations. Casinos in Reno offered discounts on hotel rooms to evacuees.On Saturday alone, 15 new fires popped up across Nevada. Changing winds sent the flames in different directions. (Trevor Bexon/Getty Images)Fire quickly turned destructiveThe fire was so small Saturday morning that it wasn't even a concern, said Tyler Duvall, who went camping over the weekend. By the next day, his house was in the evacuation zone."The wind really blew it up," Duvall said.On Saturday alone, 15 new fires popped up across Nevada. Months of dry weather and a record lack of snow this past winter across the American West have created prime fire conditions. Earlier this month, wildfires in eastern Washington state forced the evacuation of 60,000 people in the Spokane area, while three wildfires north of Reno forced more than 13,000 residents from their homes. The University of Nevada, where many of the 20,000 undergraduates moved into their housing this weekend, was just outside the evacuation zone Sunday.Two hospitals evacuated patients and the sheriff said his office was keeping a close watch on whether to evacuate the county jail.The fire moved exceptionally fast Saturday night, jumping over fire trucks and making it difficult for responders to get to hot spots while residents were trying to get out, the sheriff said."It was extremely confusing," Balaam said, describing how changing winds sent the flames in different directions.