Thousands flee California wildfires
SANTA ROSA: Firefighters battled to contain wildfires in Northern California, evacuating residents in the path of 15 separate blazes that have killed at least 10 people and destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses.
Efforts to control the fires, which swept through the state’s world-famous wine country, were being helped by more favourable weather, a spokesperson for the governor’s Office of Emergency Services said.
However, the death toll could still rise, Brad Alexander warned.
“Firefighters and emergency management workers were taking advantage of the winds dying down and a lot of work is going to be done overnight and early in the morning,” he said late on Monday.
“The top priority is still the evacuations for the most active fires because life protection is the number one concern.”
About 20 000 people had been evacuated from their homes since Sunday, officials said, while broadcaster CNN said more than 100 had been treated for injuries, including burns and smoke inhalation.
About 1 500 homes and commercial buildings had been destroyed, Ken Pimlott, director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said.
Fanned by high temperatures and dry conditions, 15 fires broke out over the weekend and spread to cover 29 542 hectares, officials said.
The largest, covering 108km2 and 101km2, respectively, struck in Napa and Sonoma counties, the heartland of California’s wine industry, where the status of the crop currently being harvested was unclear on Monday.
In addition to potential damage to vineyards from fire itself, experts say sustained exposure to heavy smoke can taint unpicked grapes.
Fred Oliai, 47, owner of the Alta Napa Valley Winery, said winemakers were nervous.
“You can’t see anything as the smoke is very dense,” he said. He had not been able to get close enough to his vineyards to see if flames had reached his 36ha property.
“We got our grapes in last week, but others still have grapes hanging,” he said.
Schools and colleges near the wildfires cancelled classes, and two hospitals in Sonoma County were forced to evacuate, officials said.
California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in Napa, Sonoma and five other counties.
That included Orange County in Southern California, where a wildfire destroyed at least a half dozen homes in Anaheim Hills. – Reuters