Firefighters mount aggressive attack against 4,700-acre Idyllwild, Calif., fire
LOS ANGELES - Joe Achtner was unloading tools from his truck about noon Wednesday when he noticed the sky above his Idyllwild home getting dark and flakes of ash falling around him.
Concerned, he drove down the street, where he saw a massive wildfire cresting a nearby hillside, threatening homes in his neighborhood of 30 years. By 9 p.m., the Cranston fire had charred 4,700 acres in the mountains south of Idyllwild.
"It came up on us really, really quickly. Within a half hour, the whole town was overwhelmed with flames," said Achtner, a 65-year-old carpenter. "All of a
