that erupted in the foothills west of denver, forcing thousands to evacuate and now being allowed to return home. although small in acreage, the blue bell fire burned dangerously close to homes. the blaze, the latest outbreak of flames raging out west, from colorado to the tres lagunas fire, to the powerhouse fire in california. this consuming much in their path. this hill, that pill, and this hill right close to the house. devastating and i feel bad for my neighbors. feel really lucky for the firefighters to have saved our house. reporter: the wildfire in new mexico, spread over 8,000 acres, forcing residents in 100 homes to evacuate. nerve-wracking not knowing if your land is okay or not. reporter: true to its name, the powerhouse fire packed a punch, scorching more than 30,000 acres of lan, threatening
destroyed by the power house fire there. that blaze is now 60% contained. a flooding emergency in missouri, a breached levey forcing hundreds of of residents in west alton, missouri to evaluate. it is currently more than 10 feet above flood stage and severe flooding sposable there today. severe storms claimed 18 lives in oahoma city since friday. we re still in tornado season so we re watching the slight risk area. a bulls eye, once again, typically where we see it around oklahoma city. also including exterior areas in oklahoma. all the ingredients still there. a lot of the warm moisture and cold and dry air and all mixing in to produce a higher threat than we saw yesterday.
lagunas fire to the powerhouse fire in palmdale, california. this hill that hill and that hill all going at once, and they are right here. it s devastating and i feel really bad for all my neighbors and i feel really lucky for the firefighters to have saved our house. the wildfire in new mexico has spread over 8,000 acres, forcing residents in 1 0 homes to evacuate. nerve-wracking not knowing if your land is okay or not. and true to its name, the powerhouse fire has packed a punch, scorching more than 30,000 acres of land, threatened 1,000 homes and destroyed at least six. there is a keeper. reporter: homes like one where the stilson family used to live. the family is used to wildfires. they are a family of firefighters, retired fire captain patrick stilson who is
from new york city, lightning striking the freedom tower. in the bronx, a rain delay at yankees/red sox game got real loud, real quick. moments ago reporter: the home team nearly jumped out of the dugout and the visiting red sox. meanwhile, out west, dry conditions of fueling fire conditions. the powerhouse fire is nearing containment after burning more than 30,000 acres. and evacuations ordered for this one west of denver, colorado. this part of the nation can t seem to catch a break. the forecast for the next 24 hours caused for more severe weather, thunderstorms, hail and, yes, the possibility, the threat of yet another tornado. alex perez, abc news, el reno, oklahoma. for the rest of your tuesday forecast, here it is. stormy weather threatens western missouri, northern plains and upper midwest. heavy rain along the gulf coast. showers and thunderstorms from the florida panhandle through the carolina coast.
colorado, and new mexico battling a series of dangerous blazes. two fires in new mexico have forced hundreds of evacuations. a fire in colorado yesterday also forcing people out of their homes. crews there are focused on structure protection as they await cooler weather today. the biggest danger is in california where the massive powerhouse fire continues. one victim describes the moment he saw the damage. all i saw was a rectangular white ash here in the garage. i knew. i knew the next direction in life would be to start over because there s nothing left. it was all gone. winds are expected to die down a bit today in california, and that will help firefighters on scene. here s a look at some of the other stories topping the news now. oscar pistorius appeared in a south african court today for the first time in nearly four months. after a brief 15-minute hearing, the murder trial was postponed until august. pistorius remains free on bail.