California wildfires scorch 8,000 sq. km
Shafaq news/ Wildfires have burned a record 8,000 square kilometers in California this year, and the danger for more destruction is so great that the U.S. Forest Service announced Monday it was closing all eight national forests in the state's southern half.
After a typically dry summer, California is parched heading into fall and what normally is the most dangerous time for wildfires. Two of the three largest fires in state history are burning in the San Francisco Bay Area. More than 14,000 firefighters are battling those fires and dozens of others more around California.
The most striking thing about the record is how early it was set, with the most dangerous part of the year ahead, said Lynne Tolmachoff, a spokesperson for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.
"It's a little unnerving because September and October are historically our worst months for fires," she said. "It's usually hot, and the fuels really dry out. And we see more of our wind events."
Seven people were killed this year as a result of fires in the state, while about 3,800 homes and buildings were damaged and destroyed.
The authorities ordered residents of several areas in southern California to evacuate their homes and take shelter from the flames, while military helicopters evacuated more than 200 people near the city of Fresno in the north of the state.
