Nearly 90,000 people in the Reno, Nevada, area have been ordered to evacuate or warned to prepare to leave as the fast-moving Hawk Fire threatens heavily populated communities in Washoe County.
About 42,000 people have been told to leave immediately, while another 45,000 are in areas where residents have been warned to get ready to evacuate. Six people have been injured, including three emergency responders, and some homes have burned as strong winds and extremely dry conditions complicate efforts to control the fire.
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo has declared a state of emergency in Washoe County, directing state agencies to support the local response through Nevada’s Emergency Operations Center. The National Guard has also been ordered to assist firefighting and law-enforcement operations. Officials have described conditions as rapidly changing and are urging residents in evacuation zones to leave when directed rather than wait for conditions to worsen.
The Hawk Fire was first reported Saturday morning near Hawk Meadow Trail west of Reno and has spread toward developed areas surrounding the city. Local officials say the fire was human-caused, although the specific circumstances have not yet been disclosed. Large air tankers and helicopters have been deployed as crews battle the fire from the ground and air, while widespread road closures and evacuation zones affect communities around Reno.
The emergency is also disrupting normal life across the region. Most Washoe County schools are closed Monday, shelters have been opened for displaced residents, and thousands of homes remain within evacuation areas. Central Reno is outside the immediate evacuation zone, but the scale of the warnings underscores what makes the Hawk Fire particularly dangerous: unlike many Western wildfires that burn primarily through sparsely populated land, this one is pressing against a major American population center.
