NAPA RESIDENTS WAKE TO ASHES AND SMOKE.
15 dead, scores missing across N. California
SANTA ROSA, CALIF. • Newly homeless residents of California wine country awoke to shattered lives Tuesday, a day after wildfires killed at least 15 people and destroyed more than 2,000 homes and businesses.
Hundreds more firefighters joined the battle against the blazes, which were still uncontained. And authorities began to identify the dead, including a 100-yearold man and his 98-year-old wife who died in their burning home.
A thick, smoky haze cloaked much of Napa and Sonoma counties, where neighbourhoods hit by the fires were levelled. In the Santa Rosa suburb Coffey Park, house after house was gone with only brick chimneys still standing. The flames burned so hot that windows and tire rims melted off cars. The only recognizable remnants at many homes were charred washing machines and dryers.
Authorities hoped cooler weather and lighter winds would help crews get a handle on 17 separate fires, which are among the deadliest in California history.
“The weather has been working in our favour, but it doesn’t mean it will stay that way,” said Brad Alexander, a spokesman of the governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
At least 100 people have been injured and 100 were missing in Sonoma County alone, authorities said.
The fires that started Sunday night moved so quickly that thousands of people were forced to flee with only a few minutes of warning, and some did not get out in time. Among the victims were Charles and Sara Rippey, who were married for 75 years and lived at the Silverado Resort in Napa.
“The only thing worse would have been if one survived without the other,” their granddaughter, Ruby Gibney told Oakland television station KTVU.
Flames imperilled parts of Southern California, too. Thousands of people were displaced by a wildfire that destroyed or damaged 24 structures, including homes. Hot, dry Santa Ana winds swept fire along brushy outskirts of Orange County suburbs and equestrian properties southeast of Los Angeles. More than a dozen schools were closed.
The blaze, which disrupted major commuter routes, spread over nearly a dozen square miles in less than 24 hours as a squadron of helicopters and airplanes bombarded it with water and retardant, and an army of firefighters grew to 1,100 by Tuesday morning.
At the northern end of the state, residents who gathered at emergency shelters and grocery stores said they were shocked by the speed and ferocity of the flames.
Some of the largest blazes burning over a 320-kilometre region were in Napa and Sonoma counties, home to dozens of wineries that attract tourists from around the world. They sent smoke as far south as San Francisco, about 96 kilometres away.