Firefighters in California are hoping a break in the seasonal Santa Ana winds Saturday will give them a chance to gain ground against wildfires that killed nine people, destroyed thousands of homes and forced 250,000 people to evacuate, VOA news reports.
The Woolsey Fire in southern California is threatening some 75,000 homes in Ventura County northwest of Los Angeles, also the site of a recent mass shooting that killed 12 people.
The mayor of the city of Thousand Oaks, where the mass shooting took place, says that three-quarters of his city is under fire evacuation orders.
The entire upscale beach town of Malibu has been evacuated, and an historic movie site where Westerns were filmed has been destroyed. Celebrities who live in the area, such as reality star Kim Kardashian West and musician Lady Gaga have been tweeting their concern for their homes and neighbors. Actor Martin Sheen told a local news reporter that he and his wife would probably sleep in their car Friday night.
The Woolsey Fire and the smaller Hill Fire, also in the southern part of the state, erupted Thursday night, fueled by drought conditions and the Santa Ana winds.
U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted about the fires Saturday, blaming California officials. He said the fires are the result of “gross mismanagement of the forests” and threatened to withhold federal money. He did not mention California’s drought conditions.
“There is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly forest fires in California except that forest management is so poor. Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests. Remedy now, or no more Fed payments!”
Meanwhile in northern California, nine people have died in the Camp Fire, which destroyed the town of Paradise, north of Sacramento, on Friday. Thousands of residents fled their homes ahead of the flames.
The Butte County Sheriff’s office said the victims were mostly found dead inside or near their cars. The sudden evacuation led to highway gridlock, forcing some to flee on foot.
Officials said Friday the fire has destroyed 6,453 homes and another 260 commercial structures and has grown to 362 square kilometers.
The blaze, which broke out Thursday along with the southern California fires, nearly quadrupled Thursday into Friday. Officials say the blaze is only 5 percent contained.
Dozens of people are reported missing.
Evacuations were ordered for the east side of the neighboring town of Chico, a city of about 93,000 people, as flames from the blaze were being driven by 56 kph winds.
California has declared a state of emergency in the northern part of the state to help facilitate rescue and recovery efforts in what has been one of the worst years for wildfires in the state.