Historically, California’s “wildfire season” started in summer and ran into early autumn but experts have warned that the risk is now year-round.
The death toll from the Camp Fire reached 42 Monday, making the Northern California blaze the deadliest fire in state history.
The Camp Fire has devastated the town of Paradise and has destroyed at least 7,177 structures, most of them homes, making it the most destructive blaze in state history measured by the number of structures destroyed.
President Trump, who on Saturday criticized California officials for “gross mismanagement” of forests, tweeted late Monday that he had approved emergency federal aid for the state.
Firefighters struggled to contain the most deadly and destructive wildfire in California history Tuesday while mobile coroner’s teams combed the incinerated remains of a once thriving town and its environs looking for more victims of the carnage.
Search teams were looking for more remains throughout the burned out area of Paradise Monday, which once had a population of about 27,000 residents, and in surrounding hill towns.
More than 300,000 locals have been forced to flee their homes across California.Many of the victims are believed to be elderly residents or people with mobility issues who would find evacuating more difficult.
The winds drive down the humidity, helping turn vegetation to tinder in an area that hasn’t seen rain in a month. Relief in the form of precipitation remains a week away, and the winds probably will stay a force into Wednesday, AccuWeather warned.
Thousands of firefighters, some from across the US, have been brought in to help battle the blazes.Nearly 9,000 firefighters have been battling the wildfires.
