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Calif. fire still rages; smoke hits Valley skies More than 1,000 acres of forest lands in northern California were claimed this weekend by a raging fire that continued to burn late Saturday. The uncontrolled blaze sent clouds of smoke north to the Rogue Valley in the late afternoon Friday and Saturday. Klamath National Forest officials say the fire caught about 11:30 a.m. Friday along Highway 96, west of Yreka, near Klamath River. Hundreds of firefighters made their way Saturday to the forest but their efforts were hindered by heavy smoke and fast-moving flames, officials said. "It�s really cookin� up now," said Tom Lavagnino, a spokesman for the Oregon-California Incident Management Team. "It�s just doing its own thing out there." No one has been injured in the fire and the flames had not threatened any homes by late Saturday. Lavagnino said there�s no word on when the fire might be contained. By 6:30 Friday, the blaze had scorched 400 acres. Late Saturday, about 1,000 acres were burned. Low winds kept the intensity of the fire down Saturday morning, but hazy skies made fire fighting difficult, Lavagnino said. An afternoon clearing picked up the flames and carried them north toward Klamath forest�s Beaver Creek. It�s unclear what ignited the flames, although investigators have ruled out natural causes, Lavagnino said. "It could have been a spark from a hot brake, a cigarette, anything," he added. "But it was caused by man � there was no lightning out here." Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA