MALIBU, Calif.—Authorities searched on Nov. 12 for more than 200 people unaccounted for in one of the wildfires rampaging through parts of California, voicing concern about a possible rising death toll, as gusty, dry winds spurred the spreading flames.
The raging blaze in northern California known as the Camp Fire, the state’s most destructive on record, had left at least 228 people missing as of early Nov. 12, according to Kory Honea, sheriff of Butte County, site of the fire. That fire and one in southern California called the Woolsey Fire have killed at least 31 people.
The blazes left behind scenes of utter ruin, with homes and businesses reduced to charred wreckage and the winds also spreading large amounts of ash.
Both fires have been whipped up by hot dry winds. Winds of up to 40 miles per hour were expected to continue in southern California through Nov. 13, heightening the risk of fresh blazes ignited by scattered embers, while the winds were forecast to begin diminishing later on Nov. 11 at the site of the Camp Fire. The wildfires flared in two new locations on the morning of Nov. 11 in southern California, officials said.
The fires have displaced more than 224,000 people. About 8,000 firefighters using fire fighting equipment including helicopters and air tankers were battling the flames, with assistance coming from out of state.
Paradise Lost
The Camp Fire, 40 miles north of Sacramento, burned down more than 6,700 homes and businesses in the town of Paradise, more structures than any other wildfire recorded in California.The fire had scorched more than 113,000 acres and was 25 percent contained, officials said on Nov. 11. Its death toll of 29 equals that of the Griffith Park Fire in 1933, the deadliest wildfire on record in California.
The blaze has probably caused between $2 billion and $4 billion in insured property damage, insurance company Morgan Stanley estimated in a report Nov. 12.
Speaking on CNN, Honea said while he holds out hope that many people listed as missing will turn up safe, “given what we’ve dealt with so far with casualties as a result of this fire, I have concerns that it (the death toll) will rise.”
In southern California, the Woolsey Fire had burned more than 91,000 acres and was 20 percent contained, with 370 structures destroyed, officials said. The fire had forced authorities to issue evacuation orders for a quarter million people in Ventura and Los Angeles counties and beachside communities including the Malibu beach colony, home to many celebrities.
At least two people have died in the Woolsey Fire, which is 20 miles long and 14 miles wide, threatening 57,000 structures, officials said.
“These are extreme conditions. If there’s a fire in your neighborhood, don’t wait for an evacuation order, leave,” Los Angeles County Fire Department Chief Daryl Osby told a news conference.
Malibu resident Tony Haynes described how strong winds brought the fire through his neighborhood during the weekend, with the sky growing dark, saying there was so much smoke he put on his scuba-diving tank to breathe. Haynes said his home survived.
“It all came down to luck and a whole lot of buckets of water,” he told KTLA 5.
Local residents were despondent over the fire damage.
“It’s not the house, because you can rebuild. But it’s what is inside the house. It’s all gone,” Malibu resident Marcella Shirk, 82, told KABC-TV. “And that’s what hurts, those kinds of things hurt, because you can’t replace that.”
California utility stocks plummeted for a second trading day on Nov. 12. Shares of PG&E Corp, which operates in northern California, dropped as much as 16 percent, bringing its decline over two sessions to 29 percent, equivalent to $8 billion. Edison International, owner of Southern California Edison Company, slumped 11 percent, leaving its stock market value $5 billion lower since Nov. 8, when the fires broke out.
President Donald Trump sent a message of support everyone battling the fire.
“The California Fire Fighters, FEMA and First Responders are amazing and very brave,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “Thank you and God Bless you all!”
