California’s Sequoia National Park has been fully closed due to a nearby wildfire in the Sierra Nevada wilderness. A statement on the park website says the action implemented earlier this week came after the park headquarters and the community of Three Rivers at the park’s southern entrance were put on evacuation notice. Sequoia National Park is threatened by the Castle Fire, part of the SQF Complex of fires ignited by lightning in the Sierra National Forest. Burning since Aug. 19, the complex has scorched nearly 192 square miles and is just 12% contained Thursday. Kings Canyon National Park, immediately to the north of Sequoia, remains open.
CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield said he thinks Americans can get the vaccine and get back to regular life in the late second quarter or third quarter of 2021.