Six killed in California wildfires as thousands are forced to flee

SACRAMENTO, Aug 21, 2020, BBC. Six people have died in wildfires that are sweeping across California and fouling the air with heavy smoke across much of the western US, BBC reported.

The worst of the hundreds of fires burning across the state are in the mountains to the south and east of San Francisco.

The fires are thought to have been started by lightning strikes amidst an historic heat wave.

Hundreds of buildings have burned down and thousands more are threatened.

Over 10,000 fire-fighters are battling the blazes, which have been burning on steep, difficult to access terrain and have been fueled by strong winds.

With more than 650,000 coronavirus cases, California also has the highest number of infections the US, and some evacuees have said they are afraid to go to emergency shelters.

One woman told CNN that she was forced to flee to a community centre in Vacaville, but is refusing to go inside for fear of catching coronavirus.

“Not only are we dealing with Covid, but with also the heat and now the fires,” said Cheryl Jarvis, who said she is currently sleeping in her Toyota Prius.

US disaster agencies have updated disaster preparedness and evacuation guidance in light of Covid-19. People who may be required to flee have been to told to carry at least two face masks per person, as well as hand sanitiser, soap and disinfectant wipes.

Emergency shelters are enforcing social distancing rules and mask wearing, and have even given individual tents to families to self-isolate. Some counties are seeking to set up separate shelters for sick evacuees or anyone who is found to have a high temperature.

Officials say people should consider sheltering with family and friends.

In another pandemic twist, officials also advise that people remain indoors due to the poor air quality outside.

California is also facing an electricity strain, which is has caused rolling blackout for thousands of customers. Officials have appealed for residents to use less power or risk further cuts.

In total, over 980 square miles (1680km) have burned across the state – an area twice the size of Los Angeles.

Satellite images show smoke blanketing nearly all of California, as well most of Nevada and southern Idaho.

Big Basin Redwoods State Park, California’s oldest state park and home to redwood trees that are 2,000 years old, sustained extensive damage to historic buildings.

Fire-fighting teams are stretched thin across the state and have been forced to work longer shifts than usual.

A volunteer fire-fighting corps made up of state prisoners, which has helped the state battle blazes since World War Two, has been diminished this year due to the pandemic.

President Trump blamed California for the fires, and threatened to withhold federal funding as he repeated a suggestion that was met with bemusement when he first raised it in 2018.

Speaking to supporters in Pennsylvania on Thursday, he said he had told state officials: “You gotta clean your floors, you gotta clean your forests — there are many, many years of leaves and broken trees and they’re like, like, so flammable, you touch them and it goes up.”

“I’ve been telling them this now for three years, but they don’t want to listen,” he said. “‘The environment, the environment,’ but they have massive fires again.”