Wildfire forces evacuations near Mt. Whitney in California’s Sierra Nevada

UPDATE: The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office reported around 5:30 p.m. Friday that evacuation orders have been lifted.

Hogback Road remains closed, but all other road closures have been lifted.

Fire personnel remain in the area.

ORIGINAL STORY: Evacuations are in place for residents and campers near Mt. Whitney, where a wildfire is burning northwest of Lone Pine in the Inyo National Forest.

The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office posted a Code Red Alert to its Facebook page on Friday morning, with a picture of the blaze, which is burning off of Whitney Portal Road and Hogback Road.

Large plumes of black smoke and flames can be seen rising in the distance.

All residents of Granite View and Horseshoe were ordered to evacuated, along with those camping in the Alabama Hills, according to the alert. So far, no structures are being threatened, the Sheriff’s Office said. That includes those at the Alabama Hills National Scenic Area near Lone Pine. The are is managed by the Bureau of Land Management Bishop Field Office.

The so-called Alabama Fire was started by a lightening strike around 1:40 a.m. Friday. It was reported to have burned some 300 acres with zero percent containment, according to Cal Fire. That number was updated to 230 acres, after better mapping was done.

That includes some federal public lands, according to the BLM.

The National Weather Service on Friday issued a Red Flag Warning and Excessive Heat Warning for the Lone Pine area with high temperatures, gusty winds and a chance of thunderstorms in the forecast.

The public should be aware of wildland fire danger and emergency vehicles and firefighters in the area. They may be utilizing roadways during an emergency.

This story was originally published June 18, 2021 at 9:14 AM with the headline "Wildfire forces evacuations near Mt. Whitney in California’s Sierra Nevada."