Death toll in Northern California wildfire zone rises to 4

Klamath River Aug 3 (BUS) – Two more bodies have been found in the area of ​​fires that broke out in a massive wildfire in northern California, authorities said, bringing the death toll to four in the state’s largest fire this year.

Search teams discovered the additional bodies Monday in separate residences along State Route 96, one of the only roads in and out of the remote area near the state line with Oregon, the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

“This brings the confirmed death toll to four,” Sharif’s statement said. “At this time there are no unknown people.” No other details were immediately disclosed.

Sheriff officials said two bodies were found Sunday inside a charred car in the driveway of a home near an unincorporated small community in the Klamath River, which was largely destroyed in the McKinney fire, the Associated Press reported.

Fires jumped into the Klamath River over the weekend and broke out in the small community of about 200 people, destroying many homes along with the post office, community hall and other scattered businesses.

“When that bonfire erupted on that ridgeline, the 100-foot blaze was blazing for 5 miles and the wind was blowing.

It was descending like a steel blowtorch. There was nothing stopping him,” said Roger Derry, 80, whose home was among the handful who survived.

More than 100 homes, sheds and other buildings have burned in the McKinney fire since it broke out last Friday. Authorities said the fire remained out of control.

Thunderstorms delivered some much-needed rain Monday through Tuesday even as temperatures soared to 90 degrees Fahrenheit (above 32.2 degrees Celsius) and brush, fields and forests generally remained dry.

But the storms also mean a threat of lightning strikes that have already triggered several small fires and the National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch until late Tuesday night over concerns that heavy rain could dump rocks, mud and water onto the fire. slopes.

In addition, the humidity and storms were “creating an unstable atmosphere that could make firefighting conditions more hazardous with winds potentially reaching 50 mph (80 km/h) during those storms,” ​​fire officials said.

However, the fire did not increase on Tuesday, and fire officials said fire crews were able to use bulldozers to carve fire barriers along a ridge to protect homes and buildings at Yreka County Headquarters.

Wildfires in Northern California have burned more than 88 square miles (228 square kilometers) and are the largest of several wildfires burning in the Klamath National Forest.

More fires are still raging in the western United States, threatening thousands of homes.

In northwest Montana, a fire that began Friday near the town of Elmo in the Flathead Indian Reservation has burned down some buildings, but authorities said they did not immediately know if there were any homes. Fire officials said the fire had a size of 25 square miles (66 square kilometers) on Tuesday, with a containment of 10%.

Some residents had to flee on Monday as high afternoon winds set off the flames.

The Idaho moose fire has burned more than 85 square miles (220 square kilometers) in the Salmon-Challis National Forest while threatening homes, mining operations, and fisheries near Salmon Township.

It was 23% contained on Tuesday, according to the National Interagency Coordination Center.

Additionally, a wildfire in northwest Nebraska led to evacuations and destroyed or damaged many homes near the small town of Gering. The Carter Canyon fire started Saturday with the merging of two separate fires. It was more than 30% contained by Tuesday.

Scientists said climate change has made the West warmer and drier over the past three decades and will continue to make weather swings and wildfires more frequent and destructive.

ZHB