A wildfire atop Mount Diablo continues to burn, but firefighters took advantage of cooler weather to up containment of the blaze from 20 to 45 percent Tuesday. Nearly 75 homes are still threatened, but it’s a drop from the 100 houses that were in the fire’s path a day earlier.
“We should see that number go down further later today or first thing tomorrow,” Todd Williams, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, “Things are looking good today.”
The fire was reported Sunday afternoon and the cause remains unknown. Three firefighters have suffered minor injuries but have managed to protect the historical visitor center and lookout on Mont Diablo. All told, 700 firefighters are still working to prevent the blaze from hitting electrical transmission lines and communication infrastructure on the mountain. One outbuilding has been destroyed but no homes have burned.