PARADISE, Calif. (AP) — Authorities have reported 13 more fatalities from a blaze in Northern California that destroyed a town, bringing the total death toll so far to 42 and making it the deadliest wildfire in recorded state history.
Friday night wind gusts of 55-miles an hour forced mandatory Wine Country evacuations as PG&E warned their electrical lines are only rated up to handle 56-mile an hour winds.
On Wednesday, an executive with Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) acknowledged that the Butte Fire, which has ravaged almost 72,000 acres in Amador and Calaveras Counties, may have been triggered by one of the company’s power lines sparking a tree into flames.
California Gov. Jerry Brown predicted Monday that the effects of global climate change would drive mass migration to his state, similarly to how the current Syrian civil war is causing thousands of refugee migrants to flee to Europe.
A fast-moving wildfire in Lake and Napa counties in Northern California has destroyed hundreds of homes as the blaze spread to consume more than 60,000 acres by Monday morning.
On Saturday, the Valley Fire, located northwest of Sacramento, mushroomed, growing from 50 acres to 40,000 acres by Sunday morning.
On Thursday, the Butte Fire, east of Jackson and southeast of Sacramento, surged, tripling in size due to hot winds and triple-digit temperatures.
