Nevada Were Preparing to Spend Another Night Away From Their Homes on Monday, August 24, As a Wildfire Advanced Toward Reno, One of the Main

On the recommendation of local authorities, schools were closed Monday across Washoe County, which encompasses the Reno metropolitan area (280,000 residents). About 24,000 people were still under evacuation orders on Monday, authorities said, while tens of thousands more were placed on alert and asked to prepare bags in case they needed to leave at any moment. The fire, named Hawk Fire, has ravaged more than 6,000 hectares since it broke out Saturday on the foothills of the Sierra Nevada.

Firefighters said they had contained 27% of its perimeter. No deaths have been reported so far, but the flames have already destroyed homes on mountaintops and injured seven people, including three first responders, according to local media. The hundreds of American firefighters mobilized against the blaze have received support from specialized teams from Australia and New Zealand.

Local fire chief Richard Edwards said at a press conference Monday that the fire was "human-caused. "We don't know if it was started intentionally or accidentally. Investigators are therefore continuing their work on this.

In all likelihood, the origin of this fire will be classified as undetermined, he added. Earlier, he urged the population to be ready to evacuate immediately as soon as they were ordered to do so. "The Hawk Fire is a very dynamic event for us, because it is fanned by the wind.

Wind-driven fires spread very quickly toward our residential areas," he warned. If you have been asked to evacuate, don't wait! said Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve.

Reno is located in northwestern Nevada, near the border with California and the tourist area of Lake Tahoe, in the Sierra Nevada. As the Hawk Fire continues to gain ground, teams from Australia and New Zealand are lending a hand to local firefighters to try to bring the blaze under control. The fire chief had earlier urged residents to be ready to evacuate immediately upon receiving orders.