Wildfire evacuation lifted in California town

About half of the residents of the Weaverville community were under evacuation Wednesday because of a rapidly moving wildfire that has been burning inside city limits.

WEAVERVILLE, California (CNN) -- Residents of this northwestern California town began returning to their homes Wednesday night as firefighters gained the upper hand on a wildfire burning inside the city limits.

"The evacuation order has been lifted now that firefighters have gotten the fire to 65 percent containment," said Jason Martin of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The blaze, which has consumed about 2,000 acres, was only 15 percent contained Wednesday morning, but Martin said low winds and favorable weather helped firefighters beat back the flames.

About 1,200 residents took refuge at the Red Cross evacuation center at the Victorian Inn.

Manager Dennis Hodges said about 250 will stay there Wednesday night as most residents returned home.

"People were relieved that the evacuation order was lifted," he said. "But some were nervous to go home to see what they might see."

Nine homes and three recreational vehicles were destroyed, but many more were saved, said Martin.

Meanwhile, a Redwood Valley man who authorities say is responsible for a separate wildfire that led to the deaths of two firefighters appeared Wednesday in a court in Ukiah. Prosecutors read the four charges against Franklin Brady, 50, but he did not have an attorney and did not enter a plea. Further proceedings were delayed until next Wednesday.

He was charged with two counts of homicide, one count of arson and one count of running a methamphetamine lab, according to Mendocino County District Attorney Norman Vroman.

Two pilots with the California forestry office were killed Monday when their planes collided as they fought a blaze near Hopland.

The district attorney said authorities are investigating whether the fire was connected to the illegal methamphetamine lab. "The fire was definitely within 10 feet of the lab. Whether it started it, we don't know. That's speculation," Vroman said, adding that the investigation continued.

The fire in Weaverville was one of 27 large fires burning across the nation Wednesday. Scott Sticha, a fire information officer with the National Interagency Fire Center, said Northern California was the biggest problem area.

Near Lake Tahoe, in the Eldorado National Forest, the Star fire had doubled in size to 8,000 acres and was only about 10 percent contained Wednesday. It was "spotting" about a half-mile ahead of the fire, which complicated containment efforts, Sticha said.

A fire burning in the Sequoia National Forest, about two miles east of Dunlap, measured more than 4,100 acres Wednesday but was expected to be contained by Thursday.

A major fire was burning near the old ghost town of Silver City, Idaho, and evacuations were possible, said a deputy with the Owyhee County Sheriff's Office.

The town has two year-round residents but several dozen others who live there part of the year, the deputy said.

The fire, which measured 10,577 acres and was 50 percent contained, was just over the road from Silver City, where six fire trucks were waiting just in case.

"The sheriff has an evacuation plan in place, and if it crosses the road, that would trigger that," said Sticha.

Owyhee County was in a state of emergency.

Silver City, an old mining community, is one of Idaho's oldest towns. When the silver ran out in the late 1800s, the governor tried to keep residents from abandoning the town by telling them there were diamonds to be found.

His fib didn't work, but it led to the current fire's name: Rough Diamonds.

Nine large fires were burning in western Montana, said Sticha, including the 14,000-acre Moose fire. It was just 5 percent contained Wednesday and was burning about 13 miles north of Whitefish.

One resident close to the fire was evacuated, and 15 others were notified of potential evacuations. A Type I team -- the highest level of an incident management team -- was called in to help fight the Moose fire, said Sticha.