Authorities have reported seven more fatalities from a blaze in Northern California, bringing the total number of fatalities so far to 63 in the deadliest wildfire in state history.
PARADISE: At least 63 people have been confirmed dead so far in the Camp Fire, which erupted a week ago in the drought-parched Sierra foothills 280 km north of San Francisco and now ranks as one of the most lethal single US wildfires since the turn of the last century.
The cause of the fires are being investigated. Two electric utilities have said they experienced equipment problems close to the origins of the blazes around the time they were reported.
Firefighters made progress on controlling the 141,000-acre wildfire, increasing containment lines to 40 percent Thursday.
The cause of the blaze remains under investigation, and officials have said they’re looking at the possibility that it was sparked by electrical equipment.
The search and recovery effort is a huge undertaking. It includes nearly 500 crew members who have been sifting through debris for signs of remains.
In Paradise and the neighboring community of Magalia, search workers wearing white hazardous-materials suits and face masks and carrying rakes scoured properties Thursday.
On Friday hundreds of rescue personnel — deputies, National Guard troops and coroners — dressed in white overalls sifted through smoldering rubble and checked mangled cars, searching for human remains.
Schools in San Francisco, Sacramento, Oakland and elsewhere have announced they will be closed Friday because of the poor air quality.
The White House said on Thursday that President Donald Trump, who has been criticised as having politicised the fires by casting blame on forest mismanagement, plans to visit the fire zones on Saturday to meet with displaced residents.
