Updated at 7:45 p.m. ET: California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in three Northern California counties after the Ponderosa wildfire destroyed dozens of buildings and threatened hundreds more.

Some 3,000 people have been evacuated as fire burns through more than 24,000 acres of steep, rugged terrain in the rural California counties of Tehama and Shasta, about 125 miles north of state capital Sacramento.

The lightning-sparked blaze was 50 percent contained as of Wednesday afternoon, fire officials said, but 200 homes, 10 commercial properties and 30 outbuildings were still at risk of being consumed by the fire.

Brown also declared a state of emergency in nearby Plumas County, where firefighters were battling a fire nearly double the size of the Ponderosa blaze. Declaring a state of emergency frees up funds to help combat the fires. 

Firefighters were expected on Wednesday to start inspecting the damage from the Ponderosa blaze, which they had surveyed by air on Tuesday.

Efforts to prevent the fire from overrunning the rural towns of Manton and Shingletown have succeeded so far despite high winds and heat, fire officials said, and evacuation orders for Shingletown and the Lake McCumber area were lifted on Wednesday.

But an expanded evacuation warning was issued for areas along Highway 36, including the community of Mineral.

"Firefighters are working aggressively to build approximately 11 miles of line and strengthen existing containment lines," the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said on its website.

"As additional resources arrive, firefighters will continue to diligently defend structures, construct containment lines and build bulldozer perimeter lines," it said.

Slideshow: Wildfires burn Western states

Blazes in multiple states threaten houses and cause evacuations.

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The Ponderosa fire is one of many burning in the Western U.S.:

Idaho
The evacuated town of Featherville, Idaho, about 50 miles east of Boise, remains under threat. The fierce Trinity Ridge Fire -- visible from space -- has claimed almost 148 square miles in the central part of Idaho, according to the Idaho Statesman. Featherville still remains untouched by the flames, but firefighters said they're ready with a plan to slow the blaze if it comes into town.

More than 100 citizen soldiers from the Idaho National Guard arrived Monday to help firefighters, Boise's NBC-affiliate KTVB reported.

"It sounds like they have got their hands full but we are here for as long as they need us," Idaho National Guard Captain Chris Harvey told KTVB. "Our primary role is for traffic control and entry points into the national forest, since they've closed the entire forest off," said Cpt. Harvey."

A thunderstorm on Tuesday made some areas of the fire more active, while the fire growth in other areas slowed because of the rain, the Idaho Statesman reported.

NASA satellite images from space illustrate just how intense the smoke over Idaho is. The state's Mustang Complex Fire is only nine percent contained, while the Halstead Fire, which is more than 93,000 acres, is only five percent contained, according to the USDA Forest Service.

Washington
Dozens of homes have fallen victim to the Taylor Bridge Wildfire raging near Cle Elum, Wash., about 75 miles east of Seattle. The fire has charred about 36 square miles of timber, sagebrush and grass in rural land, since it began a week ago at a bridge construction project, the AP reported.

At least 51 homes and cabins, as well as 26 outbuildings, are destroyed. Six homes and cabins are damaged. Officials say damage from the wildfire is already estimated at $8.3 million, Seattle's NBC-affiliate KING 5 reported.

As of Tuesday night, the fire is now 90 percent contained, KING 5 reported.

Evacuee Bob Haynie told KING 5 he still checks on his home every day.

"It takes a lot of energy to be stressed out and after a while you run out of energy," Haynie said. "So you just go on and say, 'OK, let see what happens now.'"

Air quality is suffering in the Pacific Northwest from the wildfire smoke, according to "The Smog Blog" by the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

The 2012 wildfire season has been brutal: Already, flames have consumed more than 6.9 million acres in the U.S., according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

Reuters, The Associated Press, NBC's Mike Taibbi and NBC's Natalie Morales contributed to this report.

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As a flurry of wildfires rage across the Western United States, firefighters on Monday were trying to gain control of the 15,000-acre Ponderosa fire in Northern California that began over the weekend.

Firefighters have only been able to contain five percent of the blaze, which is burning across both Tehama and Shasta counties.

The fire began on Saturday after lighting strikes hit the densely forested area about 170 miles north of Sacramento, according to The Associated Press. So far, it has engulfed more than 23 square miles near the Northern Californian towns of Manton, Shingletown and Viola, AP reported.

Seven structures have been destroyed. At least 3,500 homes are under threat Monday, according to The Redding Record Searchlight.

The fire forced the closure of Highway 44 and some local roads and prompted the sheriff to declare a State of Emergency for Shasta County. The Red Cross set up an evacuation center in Redding.

Slideshow: Wildfires burn Western states

Blazes in multiple states threaten houses and cause evacuations.

Launch slideshow

John Cluff, 42, told the Redding Searchlight that he was forced to flee his home before the evacuations were issued. He went back for his dog about 3:30 p.m. "The fire basically chased me out of the property," he said. "All I could see was black smoke and flames." 

As the fire expands to the east and west, shifting wind direction in the afternoon hours poses a challenge for firefighters. An additional 435 firefighters joined the battle on Monday, bringing the total to at least 1,409 firefighters, the Record Searchlight reported. Additionally, 122 fire engines, 2 helicopters and 47 dozers are helping out.

Wildfires are also burning all across the rest of the West.

Washington 
Good weather over the weekend helped firefighters battle the 23,225-acre Taylor Bridge Wildfire about 75 miles east of Seattle, near Cle Elum in central Washington state. Thought it was only 47 percent contained on Monday, authorities expect to have full containment by Tuesday, Seattle's NBC-affiliate KING 5 reported.

About 60 homes still remain threatened by this fire, which began on Aug. 13. It has already destroyed 48 homes and 15 outbuildings.

So far, the Taylor Bridge Wildfire has cost an estimated $6.4 million to fight, KING 5 reported.

Idaho
About 1,100 firefighters are working to protect around 350 homes threatened by the Trinity Ridge Fire on Monday, NBCLosAngeles.com reported. The blaze is threatening the mountain town of Featherville, Idaho, about 50 miles east of Boise.

Related: Idaho town emptied as state's worst wildfire nears

Officials say this fire is expected to reach the Featherville area, where residents evacuated on Saturday due to "imminent danger."

The Trinity Ridge fire, which is only five percent contained, has burned more than 90,000 acres, The Idaho Statesman reported.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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As an Idaho wildfire was closing in on two small towns Saturday, hundreds of Washington and California residents who earlier fled flames were returning to their communities to see if their homes were spared.

In Idaho, homeowners in Featherville and Pine have been preparing for days as flames from the nearly 83,000-acre Trinity Ridge Fire have approached the towns.

Officials ordered Featherville residents to evacuate late Saturday afternoon as smoke from the approaching blaze created a health hazard, the Elmore County Sheriff's office told NBC station KTVB.

The fire was expected to reach Featherville, about 60 east of Boise, late Saturday or early Sunday, Gary Lehnhausen, a fire information officer with the Trinity Ridge Fire, told KTVB.

NOAA via AFP - Getty Images

This NOAA image obtained August 18, 2012 shows the smoky haze has lifted over Northern California, Nevada and Idaho, revealing the many fires afflicting the region.

Fire activity increases in the warm afternoon sun as humidity dips to 5 percent and vegetation on surrounding hills dries out, Lehnhausen said, making it difficult for the 1,082 firefighters assigned to the blaze.

“Don’t expect a rush of flames,” he said. Expect to see spot fires and trees torching, he said.

The fire burning through timber grew 15 square miles overnight.

Idaho National Guard members are scheduled to begin assisting firefighters on Sunday.

Fire came close to historic mining town of Rocky Bar but no buildings were damaged, KTVB reported.

Pine, about 10 miles from Featherville, is the next town that will have firefighters’ attention.

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In central Washington, fire officials prepared for the possibility that lighting and thunderstorms could make it more difficult to contain the 23,000 acre Taylor Bridge fire that destroyed 48 homes and 15 other structures.

Full containment was not expected until Monday, NBC station KING reported, but many residents were returning to the south and east sides of a 35-square mile blaze near the town of Cle Elum in the Cascade Range, about 75 miles east of Seattle.

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"People are finding a little bit of everything. Some homes were damaged, some homes were destroyed and some homes weren't even touched," Fred Slyfield, emergency management specialist for Kittitas County, Wash., said Saturday morning.

About 900 firefighters and eight helicopters were still building a line around the fire, which started Monday at a bridge construction project and exploded through dry grass, brush and trees. More than 400 people fled their homes. About 30 people are in local shelters, Slyfield said.

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Fire danger remained high in the area, with hot, dry weather and a chance for storms and lightning expected Saturday evening.

"We're kind of on edge about that," said Mick Mueller, a spokesman at the fire command center.

Crews in California made progress on some of the nearly dozen wildfires burning across that state. About 400 residents were allowed to return home in a rural area of San Diego County in the southern part of the state.

Firefighters also have been making progress against a series of wildfires burning in Northern California, but officials say more than 900 lightning strikes late Friday and early Saturday have started more fires.

Slideshow: Wildfires burn Western states

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Blazes in multiple states threaten houses and cause evacuations.

Launch slideshow

State fire spokesman Daniel Berlant says lightning sparked more than a dozen new fires late Friday and early Saturday, though most of the new fires are small.

Related: What would you take? A couple pack to flee wildfire in Washington

Meanwhile, firefighters continued to battle two huge wildfires on national parklands in Northern California. The nearly 1,200 firefighters struggling to surround the Chips fire in Plumas National Forest have the fire 34 percent contained.

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