By DEVON ST. CLAIRE
40 people are reported dead due to several massive wildfires that continue to ravage Northern California for almost a week now. Firefighters still struggle to gain the upper hand. The winds that once empowered the fires to spread so rapidly on Saturday are expected to die down today. After a day of new evacuations firefighters are able to go back on the offense as cooler temperatures are expected to arrive.
The Tubbs and Atlas fires which are both more than 50% contained, are under control now. The Nuns fire, which is 30% contained will gain more of Firefighters attention. The Tubbs and Nuns fires could merge but we Californian’s are hoping for the best.
Officials said strong winds kicked up Saturday night in the central Napa Valley region, causing some fires to spread and triggering evacuations in Sonoma and elsewhere. Many feared that Saturday’s forecast would increase devastation the way that the first flames did on Oct. 8th. The fires have since exploded into more then 15 fires that scorched 220,000 acres and destroyed an estimated 5,700 structures and caused at least 40 deaths.
The winds calmed down Saturday afternoon despite low humidity and red flag warnings throughout the region. Officials said, this calming aided firefighters who have been battling the fire around the clock. The only threat that still remains is low humidity, with the dry air continuing to transform grass and vegetation into fuel.
National Weather Service forecaster Steve Anderson said, “It’s been drying out the mountains. It’s still going to be bone-dry out there overnight.” Dave Teter of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said that more than 10,000 firefighters from California and other states are fighting the fires in Northern California. The Tubbs fire in Sonoma County killed Twenty-two people already, eight are dead in Mendocino County, four in Yuba County and six in Napa County.
A Pittsburg resident said, ”We’re going to be here for weeks. I’m 51 and been in California my whole life, and I’ve never seen a fire this bad.”
The devastation from the fires have been unbelievable. They destroyed hundreds of homes in California. There is no logic in the way the fires have been burning as they have been extremely unpredictable skipping certain homes and taking many lives.
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