Armageddon aerials: Drone images show the damage caused by California’s biggest wildfire as charred trees and burnt-out homes litter the state, smoke reaches New York City and eight are confirmed dead while blaze burns on
- Redding, California released images showing aerial view of the devastation caused by Carr Fire
- Firefighter Andrew Brake, 40, was killed on Thursday in a traffic collision as he was responding to the Carr Fire in northern California
- Officials said his Cal Fire support vehicle veered off the road at a curve, hit a tree and went up in flames
- Brake worked as a Cal Fire heavy equipment mechanic from the Butte Unit and had been assigned to the Carr Fire
- Firefighters across the state are battling more than a dozen wildfires, including the Holy Fire and the Mendocino Complex Fire
- The Mendocino Complex Fire is the largest wildfire in California history
The town of Redding, California has released incredible images captured by a drone showing the scale of the devastation caused by the Carr Fire.
Eight people were killed and hundreds of homes were destroyed by the wildfires that have ravaged California in recent days.
The drone images show charred forests, burnt trees, desolate neighborhoods, and barren fields.
The town of Redding, California has released incredible images captured by a drone showing the scale of the devastation caused by the Carr Fire
Eight people were killed and hundreds of homes were destroyed by the wildfire, one of the largest in California’s history
The drone images show charred forests, burnt trees, desolate neighborhoods, and barren fields
The photos also illustrate just how close the fires came to devouring the few lucky homes that managed to remain standing
Firefighters worked tirelessly to battle the blazes, and in some cases they succeeded in heroically warding off the flames and saving a number of homes
The strategy was to ward off the wildfire so that it would be redirected toward uninhabited areas in hopes of sparing residences
The Carr Fire burned more than 277 square miles, which represents an area larger than that of Chicago
Redding is the county seat of Shasta County in Northern California – about 200 miles north of San Francisco
The city is surrounded by mountains to the north, east, and west and fertile farm land to the south
The image above shows a number of homes that were devoured by the relentless wildfires
The City of Redding worked in collaboration with UAV pilots from Menlo Park Fire District, Alameda County Sheriff, Contra Costa Sheriff, and other agencies to capture and assess the damage from recent wildfires
The homes on the bottom left and top left appear to have been spared, but the wooded area nearby on the right was not so lucky
In the summer, Redding is particularly hot and dry with little rain – factors that no doubt played a role in the fires
The estimated population of Redding is more than 91,000 residents
The Carr Fire, near the city of Redding, has proved to be the deadliest of nearly 20 major fires raging across the state
The fires have been so intense that the National Weather Service maps indicate smoke has wafted all the way from California to the East Coast
The photos also illustrate just how close the fires came to devouring the few lucky homes that managed to remain standing.
Firefighters worked tirelessly to battle the blazes, and in some cases they succeeded in heroically warding off the flames and saving a number of homes.
The strategy was to ward off the wildfire so that it would be redirected toward uninhabited areas in hopes of sparing residences.
The Carr Fire burned more than 277 square miles, according to The Weather Channel.
That represents an area larger than that of Chicago.
A dull haze and the faint smell of smoke from distant blazes have blanketed many California cities for two weeks, forcing summer campers to stay inside, obscuring normally bright skylines and leaving cars covered with ash.
Smoky air from blowing winds is nothing new in California, but air quality experts say it’s rare for the dirty air to linger for so long, a reality of ever-larger fires that take longer to extinguish.
The haze stretches from the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range to Sacramento and hovers over the San Francisco Bay Area, with most major population centers in between suffering air quality that’s considered dangerous for children, the elderly and people with asthma or other respiratory conditions.
The fires have been so intense that the National Weather Service maps indicate smoke has wafted all the way from California to the East Coast, according to Mashable.
A northern California fire mechanic assigned to the Carr Fire was killed on Thursday in a traffic collision, bringing the death toll from that blaze to eight.
Andrew Brake, of Chico, died in a single-car crash around 12.15am on Highway 99 in Tehama County when his Cal Fire support vehicle veered off the road at a curve, hit a tree and went up in flames.
Fire officials said Brake was pronounced dead at the scene, KRCR reports. He worked as a Cal Fire heavy equipment mechanic from the Butte Unit.
‘We are saddened to report the death of a CAL FIRE Heavy Equipment Mechanic from the Butte Unit assigned to the Carr Fire. He was killed early this morning as the result of a traffic accident on Highway 99 in Tehama County,’ Cal Fire said in a statement, declining to provide more details.
Firefighter Andrew Brake was killed on Thursday in a traffic collision on his way to the Carr Fire in northern California
Officials said Brake’s Cal Fire support vehicle veered off the road at a curve, hit a tree and went up in flames
According to officials, the Carr Fire has burned more than 173,000 acres and is 47 per cent contained.
Cal Fire officials said it is not sure when the’ll have it fully contained.
The Carr Fire has claimed the lives of eight people, including Brake and two other firefighters.
A 70-year-old woman in Redding and her two great-grandchildren, ages four and two, were killed when their home was engulfed in flames.
The blaze also resulted in the death of a fourth Redding resident and a Pacific Gas & Electric utility worker.
The Carr Fire is said to be the most lethal of the year.
The Carr Fire has burned more than 173,000 acres and is 47 per cent contained
Cal Fire officials said it is not sure when the’ll have it fully. The blaze has claimed the lives of eight people, including three firefighters
The International Space Station took this above satellite image showing wildfires in northern California
Firefighters across the state are battling more than a dozen wildfires. The Mendocino Complex Fire is the largest fire in the state’s history
Firefighters across California are battling more than a dozen wildfires that have scorched more than 600,000 acres.
Until the fires are fully contained, smoke now covers three quarters of the state.
Photos show towns in northern California completely destroyed by the fast-moving flames and smoke billowing high into the air.
An eerie red glow is cast over other areas as firefighters work to contain the blazes.
According to CBS News, the heavy smoke is providing some shade for firefighters battling the Mendocino Complex Fire, which is now the largest wildfire in the state’s history after the Ranch Fire and River Fire were combined.
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A thermal satellite image of the fast-moving Carr Fire, which is 47 per cent contained
Until the wildfires are fully contained, smoke now covers three quarters of California. A passenger aboard an Alaska Airlines flight snapped this photo of smoke above Sacramento
A Sheriff’s patrol officer keeps an eye on homes as the Holy Fire approaches the McVicker Canyon neighborhood
A plume of smoke rises from the Mendocino Complex fire covers on August 8, 2018 near Lodoga, California
Smoke from the Mendocino Complex fire hangs over a valley on August 8, 2018 near Lodoga
People watch the Holy Fire as it burns in Cleveland National Forest. The fire was started on Monday allegedly by a 51-year-old resident
A helicopter drops water on a burning hillside during the Mendocino Complex fire near Finley, California
Officials said the thick smoke is helping to cool down temperatures, but experts warn that conditions could change in a moment.
According to CNN, fire officials predict that it could take a month before the Mendocino Complex Fire is contained.
It took firefighters more than six months to extinguish the Thomas Fire last year, which previously held the title for the largest wildfire in California history.
Other fires still raging in California include the fast-moving Holy Fire, which was started on Monday in Holy Jim Canyon area of the Cleveland National Forest. Officials said the blaze has displaced 20,000 people and is only five per cent contained.
Authorities arrested 51-year-old Holy Jim resident Forrest Gordon Clark on Tuesday on suspicion of staring the fire.
Volunteer fire chief Mike Milligan said Clark has been in a decade-long dispute with his neighbors and sent Milligan a letter last week threatening to burn the area down.
Meanwhile, in Southern California, an intentionally set wildfire grew perilously close to homes on Thursday as evacuation orders expanded to more than 20,000 residents, though some homeowners stayed behind to fend off the flames themselves.
A firefighter battles the Holy Fire burning in the Cleveland National Forest along a hillside at Temescal Valley in Corona
Firefighters fought a desperate battle to stop the Holy Fire from reaching homes as the blaze surged through the Cleveland National Forest above the city of Lake Elsinore and its surrounding communities
A plywood structure burns during the Holy Fire in Lake Elsinore. Evacuation orders expanded to more than 20,000 residents, though some homeowners stayed behind to fend off the flames themselves
Firefighters were trying to keep the flames from devouring neighborhoods and taking lives, as gigantic fires still burning in Northern California have done
A firefighting jet drops fire retardant on homes during the Holy Fire in Corona on Thursday
A car drives in a residential neighborhood after fire tore down a hillside during the Holy Fire in Lake Elsinore
The fire is named for Holy Jim Canyon, where it erupted Monday and burned a dozen cabins
A man celebrates after hearing that his home was saved during the Holy Fire in Corona
Firefighters near a backyard pool monitor flames threatening homes during the Holy Fire in Corona
Ziggy Torok (left) and Starla Affatati watch with concern as flames close in on Torok’s home in the Rice Canyon neighborhood as the Holy Fire burns in Lake Elsinore
Firefighters fought a desperate battle to stop the Holy Fire from reaching homes as the blaze surged through the Cleveland National Forest above the city of Lake Elsinore and its surrounding communities.
They were trying to keep the flames from devouring neighborhoods and taking lives, as gigantic fires still burning in Northern California have done.
‘Our main focus this afternoon was getting everyone out safely,’ said Thanh Nguyen, a spokesman for the crews battling the Holy Fire.
A resident of the canyon, 51-year-old Forrest Gordon Clark, was charged Thursday with arson and other crimes that could send him to prison for life
As flames raged closer, some residents ignoring evacuation orders stood in driveways or on top of roofs and used garden hoses to keep their homes wet and to fight the flames as smoke billowed around them.
Fire crews worked in 100-plus-degree heat.
Aircraft dumped bright pink lines of fire retardant to wall off the fire from homes.
The 16-square-mile blaze was only 5 percent contained.
The fire is named for Holy Jim Canyon, where it erupted Monday and burned a dozen cabins.
A resident of the canyon, 51-year-old Forrest Gordon Clark, was charged Thursday with arson and other crimes that could send him to prison for life.
Clark refused to go to court Thursday and his arraignment was postponed to Friday. It’s unclear whether he has an attorney.
Winds gusting to nearly 20 mph at times drove the fire through dense chaparral on the foothill slopes and along ridgetops, sending up an enormous column of smoke that smeared the sky for miles around.
The fire threatened communities near the inland resort of Lake Elsinore in Riverside County, about 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
Hot temperatures, erratic and gusty winds, and tinder-dry vegetation are the same conditions that caused wildfires in Northern California to explode into deadly conflagrations in the space of two weeks.
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