40 killed in bushfires

HUNDREDS of people remain missing after fast-moving fires forced thousands of Californians to evacuate their homes yesterday.

The death toll from the deadliest blaze recorded in the state’s history rose to 40 and is expected to climb.

More than 10,000 firefight- ers supported by air tankers and helicopters overhead were battling 16 major bushfires, some encompassing smaller merged blazes, in areas north of San Francisco that have consumed nearly 86,000ha over seven days, or roughly 865sq/km.

The 40 confirmed fatalities, including 22 in Sonoma County, already make it the deadli- est fire event in California. About 100,000 people have been forced from their homes, including 3000 evacuated on Saturday from the city of Santa Rosa, about 80km north of San Francisco.

“This is truly one of the greatest tragedies that California has ever faced. The devastation is just unbelievable. It is a horror that no one could have imagined,” California Governor Jerry Brown said.

The fires have damaged or destroyed about 5700 structures, reducing homes and businesses to ash. The fires’ death toll surpassed the 29 deaths from the Griffith Park fire of 1933 in Los Angeles.

Firefighters from Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Colorado and Nevada have joined crews from California to battle the blazes.

From the air, 70 helicopters and large aircraft including a 747, two DC-10s and about a dozen air tankers doused flames across the affected area with fire retardant, officials said. Aircraft have dropped more than 7.6 million litres of fire retardant.