Over 1,200 evacuated as wildfire rages in California

A wildfire forced the evacuation of more than 500 homes and about 1,200 residents in a rural area east of the California state capital Sacramento on Saturday, a day after the blaze broke out, fire officials said.

The wind-swept fire burned more than 3,000 acres, destroying five residences and two outbuildings and causing one minor injury, said Lynne Tolmachoff, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

The fire is centred about 8km north of the town of Plymouth and 45km east of Sacramento in north central California and it covers parts of Amador and El Dorado counties, according to Cal Fire.