Filipinos in California urged to evacuate amid wildfire

MANILA — The Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco advised Filipinos in northern California to heed evacuation orders due to a wildfire in the area.

California Gov. Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency in Lake County after a fire, which broke on Saturday, scorced 11,500 acres of land.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said that it is monitoring the situation in Lake County, where there are more than 1,700 members of the Filipino Community.

"Consul General Bensurto said the Consulate has been in touch with authorities in Lake County who said that no Filipino has so far been reported to have been affected by the fire," the DFA said.

Filipinos in the affected region may contact the Consulate at +1 (415) 7489888 for assistance.

California's Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokeswoman Emily Smith said Tuesday that the fire in Lake County north of San Francisco is now nearly 46 square kilometers.

The blaze burning through dry brush, grass and timber has destroyed 12 homes since it started on Saturday and is threatening 600 structures.

About 1,500 people remain under mandatory evacuation orders.

Officials say unusually hot weather, high winds and highly flammable vegetation turned brittle by drought helped fuel several fires that began over the weekend.

Those same conditions led to the state's deadliest and most destructive fire year in 2017.