Most fire evacuees going home

BRIDGER-TETON NATIONAL FOREST, Wyoming (CNN) -- Officials say most people who had been evacuated from their homes because of a wildfire near the resort town of Jackson, Wyoming, will be allowed to return Monday evening.

The blaze, known as the Green Knoll fire -- is about 70 percent contained, firefighters said.

About 100 families had been evacuated from five subdivisions. The residents will be able to return to their homes in all but the Indian Paintbrush subdivision, which is closest to the most active part of the fires, officials said Monday.

No homes lost

Some of the threatened homes are valued at millions of dollars. No homes have been lost to the flames.

The fire, which started about a week ago, possibly from an escaped campfire, has charred an estimated 4,470 acres. Firefighters used favorable conditions Sunday -- cooler temperatures and lighter winds -- to bring the blaze closer to containment.

Close to 1,300 firefighters have been mobilized in the battle.

The town of Jackson and the nearby Jackson Hole resort area are not threatened by the fire, officials said. Grand Teton National Park remains open, as does all but one entrance to nearby Yellowstone National Park, which is threatened by a separate fast-moving wildfire.

Park staff evacuated

Up to a dozen park employees and their families living near the east entrance of Yellowstone National Park were evacuated Sunday night and Monday as a fast-moving wildfire consumed acres of woodlands.

The blaze, dubbed the Arthur Fire, grew to 800 acres by morning, said park spokesman Cheryl Matthews. It was first reported Sunday afternoon and was probably sparked by lightning.

"It's in an old-growth area with very heavy fuels," said Matthews, who added the area was untouched by the Yellowstone fires of 1988, which charred much of the park.

Some park employees near the east entrance, she said, stayed behind because they are trained as firefighters. The east entrance, about 50 miles west of Cody, was closed to the public.