Trump OKs fire disaster declaration
Los Angeles — President Donald Trump approved a major disaster declaration Monday for California as the state continued to battle wildfires that have killed more than 30 people and destroyed nearly 7,000 structures.
Trump’s move came just two days after he criticized California, erroneously claiming that poor forest management caused the fires of the last week. His comments were met with widespread outrage from both California officials and many firefighters.
But Monday, Trump struck a more conciliatory note.
“I just approved an expedited request for a Major Disaster Declaration for the State of California,” he wrote on Twitter. “Wanted to respond quickly in order to alleviate some of the incredible suffering going on. I am with you all the way. God Bless all of the victims and families affected.”
Gov. Jerry Brown sought the declaration Sunday, as fires raged both in Northern California’s Butte County and in Southern California.
The Woolsey Fire, which broke out Thursday in Ventura County and spread to Malibu, has obliterated roughly 370 homes and businesses. However, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection officials said about 15 percent of the burn area has been surveyed for damage, so the number of structures damaged in the inferno probably will increase. About 57,000 structures are still threatened, and the blaze has already killed at least two people, authorities said.
A couple whose charred bodies were found in a vehicle in Malibu on Friday probably died trying to escape the flames, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Guillermo Morales said.
Investigators are still trying to identify the car’s driver and passenger, both of whom were burned beyond recognition, Morales said. Investigators don’t think the two lived at the address. The home’s residents “have been accounted for,” Morales said.
A lull in winds over the weekend allowed firefighters to make some headway with the blaze, boosting containment to 20 percent, Cal Fire Division Chief Chris Anthony said.