The remains of six more victims of California’s most lethal and destructive wildfire in history were found on Tuesday, bringing the death toll to 48.
Forensic teams with cadaver dogs spent the day combing through ash and charred debris in what was let of the town of Paradise, around 175 miles (280km) north of San Francisco. Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said 100 National Guard troops were being sent in at his request to assist in the search for additional human remains left by the so-called Camp Fire.
The intensified effort to locate victims comes on the sixth day of a blaze that has incinerated more than 8,800 homes and other buildings, including most of Paradise, a town once home to 27,000 people that was largely erased hours after the fire began last Thursday. More than 50,000 local residents remained under evacuation orders.
In southern California, a blaze called the Woolsey Fire has killed two people, destroyed more than 400 structures and displaced some 200,000 people in the mountains and foothills near the Malibu coast west of Los Angeles.
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Rain may be returning to California next week, bringing much needed water to the region suffering raging wildfires amid a drought that has plagued the state for months.
Accuweather founder and president Dr Joel N Myers has released the following statement: ““This is a serious humanitarian as well as economic disaster for the state of California, possibly rivaling the negative impacts of the great earthquakes there. At this point, AccuWeather estimates that the total damage and economic impact of the California wildfires has already exceeded $80 billion, and will likely exceed $150 billion and possibly reach $200 billion by next week based on AccuWeather forecast conditions of strong winds and very little rain combined with very dry grounds and vegetation aggravated by lack of rain and strong parched winds. If these conditions and the resulting damage persist at least partially into December, this could well turn out to be one of the U.S.’ costliest weather and climate disasters, exceeding the damage caused by recent major hurricanes such as Katrina, Sandy and Harvey."
Crews battling Southern California’s enormous wildfire are struggling to widen and extend firebreaks before the return of winds that could once again drive the flames out of control.
Forecasts call for 20- to 30-mph (40-48 kph) winds with gusts to 60 mph (97 kph) by Wednesday evening in the coastal mountains northeast of Los Angeles.
That will end a three-day lull that allowed firefighters to contain about 60 percent of the Thomas fire, which is burning in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.
Altogether, the size and scope of California’s numerous wildfires are nearly as big as 16 Manhattans. Meanwhile, officials have only contained less than half of each fire, as the death toll climbs to 50 statewide.
The US Health and Human Services agency has declared a public health emergency in California after at least 50 people were killed in massive wildfires across the state. The recognition of a public health emergency allows the federal government to funnel additional funding and resources into the state as it begins on its path towards recovery.
The first victims have been identified in California’s deadly wildfires, including a rock ’n’ roll musician, a loving father and a military veteran.
Read some of their stories below.
Reuters has reported the National Guard is joining the effort to search for remains in California’s deadliest wildfires in history:
The search for remains of victims in the charred ruins of the northern California town of Paradise was set to expand on Wednesday, while firefighters stepped up efforts to contain the state’s deadliest-ever wildfire.
A National Guard contingent of 100 military police trained to seek and identify human remains will reinforce coroner-led recovery teams, cadaver dogs and forensic anthropologists already scouring the ghostly landscape, left by a fire that has killed at least 48 people.
Two hundred twenty-eight had been listed as missing, but on Tuesday night local county sheriff Kory Honea said those numbers were highly fluid as some individuals may simply have fallen out of touch during chaotic evacuations.
A brush fire has consumed nearly 30 acres of homes in Rialto, located in San Bernardino County just east of Los Angeles, CBS LA reported.
The winds in Santa Ana reportedly spurred embers and pushed smoke as new flames started, with firefighters using a bulldozer and other resources immediately at their disposal in their attempts to quell the fire’s growth.
The death toll has reached 50 across California, as officials reported the Camp Fire in the northern region of the state had killed at least 48 people. Hundreds remain missing as of Wednesday morning, with fire agencies across the country assisting in relief efforts and battling back the flames.
Cal Fire posted a message to Twitter thanking its out of state partners who have contributed to the state’s search and rescue missions, as well as battling back the blazes that continue to rage across the state.
A horse was found stuck on a backyard pool cover in in California, “shivering uncontrollably” with “a look of defeat” after surviving the wildfires in the area. It wasn’t immediately clear how long the horse had been stuck inside of the pool.
Brynn Parrott, who narrowly escaped the California wildfires in Paradise, told CNN “We thoughts our tires would melt … we didn’t know what was in front of us.”
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