Firefighters make progress against massive blaze in California ahead of warming weather

FOREST RANCH, Calif. (AP) — Fire crews worked Tuesday to hold on to the progress made against the largest blaze in California this year ahead of warming temperatures forecast for later this week.

Authorities said containment was 14% and lifted evacuation orders in some communities of Butte County, where the Park Fire started last week before spreading to a neighboring county and scorching an area bigger than Los Angeles. The massive fire continues to burn through rugged, inaccessible terrain with dense vegetation, threatening to spread to two other counties.

“That’s going to be a continued challenge for us moving forward over the next couple of days," said Mark Brunton, an operations section chief with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Cooler weather has helped firefighters stop the blaze's path near some communities like Forest Ranch, where some people began returning to unscathed homes Tuesday.

Christopher and Anita Angeloni have lived in the community of 1,600 for 23 years and have had to evacuate several times due to wildfires, including the 2018 Camp Fire that killed 85 people and decimated the town of Paradise, about 8 miles (13 kilometers) south.

Christopher Angeloni said he constantly worked on creating defensible space around his home and was happy to return home nearly a week after evacuating to see his hard work paid off.

“We were prepared to possibly lose everything,” he said.

Anita Angeloni said it has been a stressful week.

“We have not been sleeping enough, very tense, praying all the time, teary eyes," she said. “But we’re here. We’ll see for how long.”

The Park Fire, now the fifth largest in the state’s recorded history, was one of more than 100 large active wildfires burning in the U.S. on Tuesday. It has scorched nearly 600 square miles (1,551 square kilometers), according to CAL Fire. For comparison, the city of Los Angeles covers about 470 square miles (1,217 square kilometers).

Some blazes were sparked by the weather, with climate change increasing the frequency of lightning strikes as the western U.S. endures blistering heat and bone-dry conditions.

The Park Fire started last Wednesday after authorities say a man pushed a burning car down a ravine in Chico. It has destroyed nearly 200 structures and is threatening thousands more. The suspect, Ronnie Dean Stout II, was charged with arson on Monday. His public defender, Nicole Diamond, said in an email she had no comment.

Some progress against the fire was made after cooler temperatures, more humidity and calmer winds in the last few days helped firefighters reach 14% containment as of Tuesday.

In the small forest community of Cohasset in Butte County, Ron Ward ignored evacuation orders last week and stayed behind with his son to defend his property, seeing Park Fire flames hundreds of feet high approach his family ranch.

He had lost insurance coverage on the property just a month earlier as companies increasingly drop California homeowners due to the growing risk of wildfires in the state.

He said the flames reached within 70 feet (21 meters) of his house. Then they stopped.

“It hit our sprinklers and kind of died down and then went around our property and missed, missed all of our structures,” Ward said. His 100-year-old ranch was saved.

Ward had to be the one to call his bookkeeper and neighbors to tell them their homes were gone.

“They haven’t even been able to get back to look at their homes,” he said, tearing up as he recounted last week's experience to The Associated Press in an interview Monday.

All through Cohasset there were remnants of the devastation, with charred mailboxes and vehicles covered with pink fire retardant dropped by aircraft. The husks of a washer and dryer set were surrounded by burned debris and a blackened motorcycle was propped upright, balancing on rims after its tires melted away.

Evacuation orders were in effect Tuesday on 25 wildfires, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. More than 27,000 wildland firefighters and support personnel are assigned to wildfires that have burned more than 3,200 square miles (8,288 square kilometers) nationwide, the center said.

In Southern California, people in Kern and Tulare counties were ordered to evacuate because of a fire sweeping through the Sequoia National Forest. The Borel Fire scorched through almost the entirety of the historic mining town of Havilah, officials said.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is scheduled to visit the town of 250 people later Tuesday.

“We’re seeing so many of these iconic places in California . . . being quite literally devastated by these new realities,” Newsom said.

The fires burning throughout the state have overwhelmed California’s firefighting capacity and outside help has started to arrive, officials said. Newsom thanked Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott on Tuesday for sending more than two dozen fire engines to help combat the Park Fire this week.

U.S. Fire Administrator Dr. Lori Moore-Merrell said one-third of U.S. residents live in an area where human activities and wildland vegetation intersect, creating a higher potential for wildfires, according to a statement.

“We question living here for sure,” Ward said of his ranch in Cohasset. But generations have remained since his wife's great-grandfather settled there in 1905, and he isn't the one to leave, he said.

“There's a lot of history here,” Ward said. “So we live on this ranch, and we’re committed to this ranch and preserving the ranch.”

Rodriguez reported from San Francisco. AP writers Eugene Garcia, Tran Nguyen and Rebecca Boone contributed.

The Park Fire burns along Highway 36 near Dales, Calif., Monday, July 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Fire crews light a burn operation along Highway 36 to slow the Park Fire near Dales, Calif., Monday, July 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

A fire crew walks along Highway 32 near Butte Meadows, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

A helicopter drops water on the Park Fire near Butte Meadows, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Andrea Blaylock becomes emotional as she sifts through the charred remains of her home that was destroyed in the Park Fire near Forest Ranch, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Fire crews light a burn operation along Highway 36 to slow the Park Fire near Dales, Calif., Monday, July 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

A firefighter walks by the remains of a home that was destroyed in the Park Fire near Forest Ranch, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Ron Ward, 63, and son Ethan, 31, pose for a photo on their ranch in Cohasset Calif., Monday, July 29, 2024. They've been driving around in a off road cart vehicle putting out spot fires and informing their evacuated neighbors that their homes burned down. Firefighters made progress and were helped by improving weather over the weekend in the battle against wildfires covering massive areas in the western United States, but further evacuations have been necessary as thousands of personnel tackle the flames. (AP Photo/Eugene Garcia)

The Park Fire burns along Highway 32 near Butte Meadows, Calif., Sunday, July 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

A CalFire firefighter cuts smaller trees along Highway 32 to help control the Park Fire near Butte Meadows, Calif., Monday, July 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

FILE - This photo provided by the Butte County District Attorney shows Ronnie Dean Stout II of Chico, Calif. Stout was charged with arson, for allegedly starting the Park Fire, during his first court appearance Monday, July 29, 2024. (Butte County District Attorney via AP, File)

A Beckwourth Hot Shot cuts trees along Highway 32 to help control the Park Fire near Butte Meadows, Calif., Monday, July 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

The Park Fire burns near Butte Meadows, Calif., Monday, July 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Firefighters put out hot spots from the Park Fire along Highway 32 near Forest Ranch, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

A firefighter monitors trees burned in the Park Fire along Highway 32 near Forest Ranch, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

A helicopter carries waters over the Park Fire near Forest Ranch, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Firefighters put out hot spots from the Park Fire along Highway 32 near Forest Ranch, Calif., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — There were moments when rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler had a rollicking Superdome crowd believing that he could guide the New Orleans Saints to their largest comeback victory since 2009.

Then he, and the Saints, got shaken, rattled and rolled.

Rattler, a fifth-round draft pick making his NFL debut in place of the injured Derek Carr (oblique), threw two interceptions and was sacked five times in the second half on Sunday as a three-point lead turned into a 51-27 blowout defeat to NFC South rival Tampa Bay.

New Orleans, which scored 20 points in a 5:06 span of the second quarter to erase a 17-0 deficit, was shut out after halftime.

“We shot ourselves in the foot a few times, made a few mistakes, starting with myself,” Rattler said. “Got to play better in the second half, but we fought, we battled and we’ll learn and get better from it.”

Rattler, inactive behind Carr and second-year quarterback Jake Haener for the first five games, hurt the Bucs early on with a series of planned roll outs. He finished 22 of 40 for 243 yards, but was only 11 of 23 for 103 yards after halftime.

All of the Bucs’ five sacks came in the second half.

“We were setting the edge more with our outside guys instead of trying to drop them,” Tampa Bay coach Todd Bowles sad. “We knew if we could cut him off in the pocket and just keep him as a pocket passer, we’d have a chance to get a little pressure on him.”

Rattler was sacked twice in a row after the Saints took over near midfield following a Tampa Bay punt in the third quarter, leading to Chris Godwin’s catch and run for a 55-yard score as the Bucs went ahead for good, 31-27.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, cornerback Zyon McCollum intercepted Rattler’s underthrown deep pass, intended for receiver Rashid Shaheed, at the Tampa Bay 42, leading to an insurance touchdown.

When safety Tykee Smith picked off another underthrown pass, it ended a stretch of five series during which the Saints had only one first down and two turnovers.

“They definitely had a good plan that second half but it came down to execution,” Rattler said. “It was about what we could have done better and what I could have done better.”

Rattler received one of the loudest roars, along with star running back Alvin Kamara, during pregame introductions. The former Oklahoma and South Carolina QB drew more cheers when he completed his first pass for 27 yards.

His next throw was on target, too, but Smith stripped Chris Olave of the ball and Antoine Winfield Jr. returned the fumble 58 yards for a touchdown and a 14-0 Tampa Bay lead. Olave also sustained a concussion on the play from a helmet-to-helmet hit from McCollum, leaving the Saints without their top wide receiver.

“It’s unfortunate to see your top guy go down early in the game," Rattler said of Olave. "We wanted to really get him involved this game.”

Rattler responded well to the early adversity. He went 4 of 4 for 40 yards on a field-goal drive that cut the deficit to 17-3. He threw a strike to Bub Means in the corner of the end zone for his first career scoring toss and Means’ first career touchdown. That gave the Saints their first lead at 20-17. He hit tight end Foster Moreau for 41 yards to set up Alvin Kamara’s 4-yard touchdown run 2:47 before halftime to give the Saints their last lead of the game.

While Rattler struggled, New Orleans gave up 594 yards—11 shy of the franchise record set against Minnesota in 2004 — and were outrushed 277-81.

"I don’t think we did enough around him to help him,” Saints coach Dennis Allen said of Rattler before adding he intended to start the rookie QB again Thursday against Denver. “It was hard for us to be able to run. They won the line of scrimmage. He did some things really well early in the game, but as the second half kind of went on, they started to pressure him a little bit more.”

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New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) runs against Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (9) during the first half of an NFL football game in New Orleans, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Bub Means, middle left, celebrates with quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) and teammates after scoring against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half of an NFL football game in New Orleans, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) celebrates during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in New Orleans, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler passes against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half of an NFL football game in New Orleans, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)