UPDATE 8 a.m. Friday:
The fire is now 45,911 acres with 29 percent containment. There has been one fatality and seven injuries to date. 1 structure has been destroyed.
Mandatory evacuations have been ordered for the following locations:
- Anderson Valley
- Cedar Lodge/Indian Flat Campground
- East Westfall Road to Chowchilla mountain Road, and all side roads
- El Portal Trailer Court
- Foresta
- Incline Road from Foresta Bridge to the last BLM campground
- Lushmeadows Community
- Old El Portal
- Old Yosemite Road
- Ponderosa Basin Community
- Rancheria Flat – Government Housing
- Savage’s Trading Post
- Tip Top Road from Triangle Road to Gunther Road, including Gunther Road
- Triangle Road from Darrah Road in the Lushmeadows area to Highway 49 South, and all side roads
- Yosemite View Lodge
- Yosemite West
Road closures:
- Triangle Road, from Darrah Road to Hwy 49 south Chowchilla Mountain Road, at Hwy 49 south
- Harris Road, at Hwy 49 south
- Tip Top Road, from Triangle Road to Gunther Road
- All roads inside Lushmeadows Subdivision
- All roads inside Ponderosa Basin Subdivision
- Hwy 140 is closed from 1.9 miles east of Midpines to the Cedar Lodge area
Red Cross Evacuation Center:
- Mariposa Elementary School 5044 Jones St, Mariposa, CA 95338
Original story:
The deadly Ferguson Fire in Yosemite National Park has forced closures across the area, pushing many tourists out.
Thick smoke and falling ash has prompted visitors to head to surrounding communities, like Modesto in Stanislaus County.
"Just today we came from Yosemite Park," Susan Drobe told ABC10.
Drobe and her husband are visiting all the way from Germany.
"We are happy that we left today," she said.
They weren't in any immediate danger staying in Oakhurst, about an hour and half away from Yosemite, but the smoke from the Ferguson Fire still became too much.
"Very cloudy, very foggy, a lot of smoke, so we prefer to leave the area," Drobe said.
Now they're taking an unexpected detour to Modesto on their American road trip, where they plan to take full advantage of the area's famous attractions, like the McHenry Mansion.
"We thought it's a nice place to stop by and have the little tour, which the lady did very well and was very exciting to see it," she said.
And they weren't alone. The park, known for drawing in upwards of 20,000 visitors a day during the summer, has been forced to turn people away with park closures through Sunday. Visit Modesto tells ABC10 more people are likely to come here because of certain road closures.
"It's bringing some of those visitors to our area through evacuations. I know they've temporarily closed Highway 140, which means they have to leave the Yosemite Valley through 120, which basically does reroute people through Modesto in our area," Jennifer Mullen, Executive Director of Visit Modesto said.
The park's closure is sparking a welcome, but unexpected boost to their economy.
"With the influx of visitors coming into Modesto from the fire, that would be an increase of rooms. And with an increase of rooms, those folks would also have to eat meals, get gas here, maybe even do some shopping while they're here," Mullen said.
As for the Drobe's, they're also hoping to cool off with some Modesto treats.
"We're looking for a place to drink some milkshakes," Drobe said.
For a full list of current closures at Yosemite National Park, click here.
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