Wildfires devastate US West Coast, at least eight dead

Clovis (United States) (AFP) – Wildfires raged Thursday up and down the US West Coast, whipping through towns in three states and prompting widespread evacuations as officials warn the death toll could shoot up in the coming days.

At least eight people have been confirmed dead in the past 24 hours across California, Oregon and Washington, but officials say some areas are still impossible to reach, meaning the number is likely to rise.

In Butte County, California, where three people have been killed, firefighters battled the flames through the night, after a day of apocalyptic orange skies over the Golden State.

Five towns were “substantially destroyed” as widespread evacuations took place across Oregon, governor Kate Brown said.

“This could be the greatest loss of human lives and property due to wildfire in our state’s history,” she told a press conference.

In Oregon, two deaths were confirmed in the Santiam Canyon region, 60 miles (95 kilometers) south of Portland, and another was recorded in the Ashland area, near the California border.

Only “smoldering ruins” remained of large parts of the town of Talent, local resident Sandra Spelliscy told AFP.

“There are numerous neighborhoods where there are no structures left standing… dozens of homes (gone) and literally nothing except the skeletons of a chimney or an appliance,” she said.

Emergency officials ordered the evacuation of Estacada — a small, rural city 30 miles southeast of Portland.

Jason Valean, 29, fled his house on foot with his two large dogs and was nervously waiting in the central downtown area for his mother.

“She wanted to keep the dogs in their pen, but I wasn’t going to let her,” he said, adding she had released their pigs in the hope they would have a chance of getting away safely.

Another resident said she was planning to stay despite the evacuation order because she worried about looting, although her husband was leaving with their son and granddaughter.

– ‘We just left everything’ –

California, Oregon and Washington have been scrambling to contain the rapidly spreading wildfires since the weekend due to unprecedented heatwaves followed by intense, dry winds.

Among those killed was a one-year-old boy who perished while his parents suffered severe burns as they attempted to flee an inferno 130 miles east of Seattle.

“This child’s family and community will never be the same,” said Washington governor Jay Inslee, in a statement on his state’s first fire death of 2020.

“And neither will countless others who are reeling from the utter devastation these wildfires are leaving in their wake.”

Four unidentified people were also killed in two separate fires in northern California, including one near the remote rural community of Happy Camp, a Cal Fire spokeswoman said.

Leanna Mikesler, from Clovis in the state’s center, told AFP she had been forced to flee wildfires before, but it was “10 times harder” during the coronavirus pandemic.

In the San Francisco area, Wednesday’s deep orange sky caused by wildfire smoke gave way to a wintry gray, but cars were still forced to drive with lights on in the gloom.

Heavily polluted air meant schools and daycares were no longer letting children play outside, while seniors and vulnerable individuals were encouraged to stay inside.

But the past days’ strong, dry winds eased off across much of the state, with severe weather warnings lifted for most of California. Humidity is expected to rise as temperatures cool through to next week, providing some relief, Cal Fire said.

Much of the smoke has blown down from the north, where the Bear Fire exploded at an unprecedented speed this week, combining with older blazes to threaten the town of Oroville.

Evacuation warnings were expanded to parts of the town of Paradise, the site of California’s deadliest modern fire which killed 86 people less than two years ago.

All 18 of the state’s national forests have been closed.

– ‘We must do more’ –

Including eight California fire deaths last month, the region’s total reported death toll for the year is now 16.

California has seen more than 3.1 million acres burn this year — an annual record, with nearly four months of fire season still to come.

Governor Gavin Newsom blamed the ferocity of this year’s fires on climate change.

He tweeted: “We must do more. We need action at EVERY level. CA cannot do this alone. Climate change is REAL. So please — VOTE.”