WEB DESK
The death toll in the wildfires raging through California has risen to 25. This comes after the recovery of 14 more bodies near the town of Paradise in the state’s north and the death of two more people in the south, near Malibu.
Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea told a news conference that 10 of the additional victims were found in Paradise with four in the nearby Concow area.
An estimated 2,50,000 people have been forced to flee their homes to avoid three major blazes in the state.
The Camp Fire began spreading through Butte County on Thursday, and firefighters were powerless to stop it destroying the town of Paradise. Another fire swept into the southern beach resort of Malibu on Friday and has now doubled in size.
This fire, known as the Woolsey, now covers an area of 28,000 hectares. By yesterday, the Camp Fire had burned 40,500 hectares and was only 20% contained.
Fire chiefs estimate it will take about three weeks to fully control the blaze. The fire started in the Plumas National Forest, north of Sacramento, on Thursday and quickly engulfed the town of Paradise. Residents fled for their lives as more than 6,700 homes and businesses were destroyed, making the fire the most destructive in the state’s history.