Thousands of Californians have been forced to evacuate their homes as the state’s largest wildfire this year tore through nearly a quarter-million acres of property, authorities said.
The blaze, known as the Dixie Wildfire, has at least 4,000 people under evacuation orders as it raged in the mountains in Butte and Plumas counties, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
More than 244,000 acres in the region have been scorched by the fire since it was sparked in the Fremont-Winema National Forest on July 6, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
The inferno has torched at least 45 buildings and threatened more than 10,000 more.
Firefighters have raced to prevent the fire from reaching the town of Paradise, which was largely destroyed in 2018 by the nation’s deadliest wildfire in a century.
The DIxie fire was 32 percent contained Sunday, prompting authorities to lift some warnings and evacuation orders.
Authorities, however, warned that unpredictable winds and extremely dry conditions could cause more flare-ups in the region.
Experts have said that a historic drought and recent heatwaves have made wildfires more difficult to contain in western states.
The blaze comes as nearly 22,000 firefighters and support personnel were battling 91 large, active wildfires covering 2,813 square miles mostly in the American West, officials said.
With Post wires
