California Wildfire 2022: McKinney Fire Burns 51,000 Acres, Thunderstorm Could Make Matters Worse

California is seen to experience another large-scale wildfire this week. The McKinney Fire has already burned more than 51,000 acres of land as of Sunday.

Fox News reported that the threat brought by the calamity could be worsened by chaotic weather conditions, as the northern part of California was bracing for thunderstorms and hot, windy conditions on Sunday.

The said fire specifically occurred in northern California's Klamath National Forest. McKinney Fire erupted at 2:38 p.m. on Friday, specifically at Highway 96 and McKinney Creek Road southwest of the Klamath River. The cause remained under investigation as of Sunday, Sacramento Bee reported.

The blaze in Siskiyou County exploded in size to more than 80 square miles just two days after it erupted. Officials confirmed early Sunday that the McKinney Fire had burned a total of 51,468 acres of land so far, making it the largest California wildfire in 2022.

According to officials, McKinney Fire was 0% contained as of Sunday morning.

"Little progression was observed on the fire's edge closest to Yreka City," according to the fire's incident commanders. The McKinney Fire remained five and a half miles away from Yreka City, an area home to over 7,000 people.

California Wildfire 2022: Thunderstorms May Increase the Threat of McKinney Fire

On Sunday, U.S. Forest Service spokesperson, Adrienne Freeman, said that expected thunderstorms in an area located just south of the Oregon state line are a big concern.

"The fuel beds are so dry, and they can just erupt from that lightning... These thunder cells come with gusty, erratic winds that can blow fire in every direction," Freeman noted.

Klamath National Forest officials also pointed out that the massive smoke plume from the McKinney Fire created its weather, including lightning storms.

Due to the lightning, two more fires were added to California Wildfire 2022. A smaller fire located west of the McKinney Fire sparked by lightning threatened the town of Seiad on Saturday.

According to Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Courtney Kreider, a third fire located southwest of the big blaze prompted evacuations of around 500 homes on Sunday.

California Wildfire 2022: McKinney Fire Prompts Evacuation

Evacuations were made over the weekend as the McKinney Fire continued to wreak Havoc in Siskiyou County.

On Saturday afternoon, Yreka Police evacuated a mobile home park called Oakridge Mobile Estates. The police department announced that the said area needed additional time for evacuation due to its proximity to the McKinney Fire.

Fairchild Medical Center in Siskiyou County also moved its patients out of the hospital for "an abundance of caution." The said patients were brought to other hospitals as far as those in Sacramento.

Around 60 hikers off the Pacific Crest Trail on the California side of the Red Buttes were assisted by the Jackson County Sheriff's Office Search And Rescue and Rogue Valley Transportation District (RVTD) personnel in Oregon on Saturday.

Officials also began compiling a list of missing or found animals amid the wildfire. An evacuation was set up at the Weed Community Center at 161 E. Lincoln Ave. American Red Cross area branch spokesman Stephen Walsh noted that at least 20 people stayed in the evacuation center as of Saturday.

California Gavin Newsom also declared a state of emergency in Siskiyou County on Saturday due to the effects of the McKinney Fire. The governor's office claimed that the said blaze destroyed homes, threatened critical infrastructure, and prompted the evacuation of almost 2,000 residents.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Joshua Summers

WATCH: McKinney Fire Burns More Than 51,000 Acres in Northern California - From ABC News