California fire death toll rises to 23
Firefighters estimate three weeks needed to contain blaze
PARADISE, CALIFORNIA: The death toll from wildfires hitting California rose to 23 on Saturday as rescuer recovered more bodies of people killed by the infernos.
Firefighters battled raging fires at both ends of the state - in Butte County, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains north of Sacramento, and in Los Angeles , where two deaths were reported.
There is little hope of containing the flames anytime soon, as the National Weather Service said strong winds and dry conditions were expected through the weekend.
"Today, 14 additional bodies were located, which brings our total number to 23," Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said on Saturday as he discussed a blaze known as the Camp Fire.
Acrid smoke from the fire covers the sky - the sun is barely visible. Abandoned cars are reduced to metal carcasses while power lines are gnawed by the flames.
Evacuation orders have been issued for more than 52,000 people in the area.
In the town of Paradise, more than 6,700 buildings - including a hospital, a gas station and several restaurants - have been consumed by the fire.
Rescuers removed human remains over several hours in Paradise and placed them in a black hearse. Charred body parts were transported by bucket, while intact remains were carried in body bags.
At the Holly Hills Mobile Estate, the mobile homes had been reduced to smouldering piles of debris. Locals have fled, but police told AFP some farmers returned to check on their cattle.
Fanned by strong winds, the blaze has so far scorched 100,000 acres (more than half the size of Singapore ) and is 20 per cent contained, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) said. So far, three of the more than 3,200 firefighters have been injured.
The department estimates it will need three weeks to fully contain the blaze.
Local power authorities told state officials that an outage occurred near the spot where the fire erupted, The Sacramento Bee reported, but there is no official cause of the Camp Fire blaze.
President Donald Trump, travelling in France, drew criticism for his unsympathetic reaction to the devastation.
"There is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly forest fires in California except that forest management is so poor," he tweeted.
"Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests. Remedy now, or no more Fed payments!"
ILL-INFORMED
Mr Brian Rice, the head of the California Professional Firefighters, slammed Mr Trump's tweet as "ill-informed, ill-timed and demeaning to those who are suffering as well as the men and women on the front lines."
He said the president's claim that forest policies were mismanaged "is dangerously wrong".
Mr Trump later showed more sympathy. "Our hearts are with those fighting the fires," as well as the evacuees and families of the victims, he tweeted.
"God Bless them all." - AFP
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now
