Severe risk in play for 17M Californians
LOS ANGELES – The hurricaneforce wind gusts that fanned at least 10 wildfires across the state were easing Thursday, providing a respite for firefighters and residents overwhelmed by evacuations, preemptive power outages and extreme fire warnings.
More than 350,000 people were without power Thursday because of an unrelenting series of planned outages aimed at limiting fire risk.
Still, downed and sparking wires were suspected of igniting some of the blazes.
More than 17 million residents live in areas designated as critical or severe wildfire risk Thursday, the National Weather Service said.
That number should fall precipitously in the next couple of days, AccuWeather senior meteorologist Paul Walker said.
The end of the wind event should also bring more amenable temperatures for firefighters who have at times been battling blazes in intense heat. But the news isn’t all good.
“Any significant rain remains two or three weeks away,” Walker said. “We won’t see more humidity. And another wind event could be coming in the middle or late next week.”
The state forestry and fire protection agency Cal Fire said 10 fires had collectively consumed more than 144 square miles in recent days. At least 36,000 Californians were under evacuation orders, and more were coming.
Still, the number was down from more than 200,000 last week, thanks to firefighting efforts that have allowed many residents to return home.