But the Basin fire took hold. A total of 951 firefighters have worked to contain the fire and keep it from crossing the river on its southern perimeter, where groves of ancient sequoias stand, said Mike Lindbery, a spokesperson for Basin fire.

The Sierra National Forest has issued a temporary closure that will remain in effect until July 30.

Other parts of the state also continued to burn. Cal Fire listed 14 active incidents as of Monday night.

In San Diego County, a car fire is believed to have sparked a 900-acre brush fire Thursday. Dubbed the Mccain 4 fire, the blaze was not contained as of 7 p.m., threatening about 100 structures in Jacumba Hot Springs, said Mike Cornette, a spokesman for Cal Fire San Diego.

Dry grasses struck by lightning June 24 fueled three separate fires in eastern Fresno County that burned more than 10,000 acres but were under control. As of Monday, the Fresno June Lightning Complex fire — which charred antenna towers on Bear Mountain — was 78% contained, and evacuation orders had been lifted.

So far this year, 131,483 acres have been blackened across the state, an early boom in California wildfires. But it's, as of yet, a fraction of the acreage and loss of life seen in recent years. Foxworthy said, however, it only takes one wildfire to devastate the region.

In 2018, the Camp fire became the deadliest in California's history, killing 86 people. It began after a PG&E transmission line in the Sierra Nevada foothills malfunctioned. Two years later, wildfires across the state burned 4.3 million acres and 33 people died.

This summer — in the face of an early wildfire season, extreme heat and dense, drying vegetation — Cal Fire has increased its ranks in preparation, Foxworthy said.

"We have extra folks on," he said, "so we are fully staffed up now."

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(Times staff writer Grace Toohey contributed to this report.)

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