A fire inferno in California drives Thousands into flight
Thousands of firefighters are battling one of the largest wildfires in California's history. The flames have already destroyed over 140,000 hectares of land - Thousands of people have been forced to evacuate. The cause of the fire was reportedly a burning car.
This is one of the largest wildfires in California's history: The wildfire in the northern part of the US state has, according to official reports, destroyed over 140,000 hectares of land by Saturday evening. The area near the city of Chico was particularly affected, where over 4000 people had to evacuate their homes due to the flames. The fire department stated that they were still far from being able to get the intense fires under control. "The extreme fire conditions continue to pose a challenge for firefighters," the California Fire Department (Cal Fire) announced on X.
The wildfire has meanwhile developed into the seventh largest fire that California has experienced since records began. Despite the efforts of over 3700 firefighting personnel, more than a dozen helicopters, and several airplanes, only ten percent of the flames had been brought under control according to the latest reports. "Numerous firefighting aircraft from the entire state are flying sorties to suppress the fire, as conditions allow," Cal Fire stated. Lower temperatures and higher humidity would have reduced "fire activity" - but the fire was still spreading, the department continued.
The "Park Fire" wildfire broke out near Chico in the Butte County administration area on a Wednesday. Within hours, the flames had devastated a large area there and in the neighboring Tehama County. On Thursday, the police arrested a 42-year-old suspect who allegedly pushed a burning car into a ravine and thus ignited the fire. Chico is only about 24 kilometers from the city of Paradise, where a devastating fire killed 85 people in 2018.
"The Most Traumatic and Saddest"
Due to the explosive spread of the current fire, an evacuation alarm was again issued for Paradise. The residents of the city are reminded of painful memories. "I don't want anyone else to go through this," said Ava Elsner, who lived through the fire in 2018 with CNN. "It's the most traumatic, terrifying, and sad thing when an entire community goes up in flames," Elsner continued. California is experiencing an early start to what appears to be an especially intense wildfire season.
Experts see climate change as the cause of the extreme weather conditions. In the neighboring state of Oregon, a major fire has meanwhile destroyed over 117,000 hectares of land. According to official reports, it is currently contained to about 50 percent.
The fire, now classified as the seventh largest in California's recorded history, has sparked international concern due to its size and intensity. The California Fire Department (Cal Fire) is collaborating with international counterparts to combat the wildfire that has engulfed over 140,000 hectares of forest lands, including in the vicinity of Chico. Despite the joint efforts of domestic and international firefighting forces, the fire's progression continues to be a formidable challenge, leading some experts to link the extreme fire conditions to climate change.
