Nevada wildfire forces evacuations

Homes in Nevada were forced to evacuate following a raging wildfire on Wednesday, 17 June.

The flames were met with rapid response, as firefighters used helicopters to drop water on the blaze blackening exceptionally dry vegetation in the south of Reno.

The fire in Steamboat Valley quickly expanded to about 1.3 square kilometres, on a day with temperatures of 35 Celsius and crackling-dry humidity but little wind, officials said.

There were no immediate reports of structures damaged and evacuations were eventually lifted.