USA Wildfires in California: Thousands evacuated

Several forest fires have broken out in the US state of California.

The most dangerous fire at the moment is the "Thompson" fire in the town of Oroville, a good 110 kilometers north of Sacramento, as the newspaper "Los Angeles Times" wrote on Tuesday (local time).

Around 13,000 people in Butte County have already had to leave their homes, the newspaper quoted a spokesman for the local sheriff's office as saying. So far there have been no fatalities in the fires currently raging in the state, according to the Californian fire authority Cal Fire.

A forest fire near Calistoga in Napa County north of San Francisco also kept firefighters and residents on tenterhooks, as reported by US broadcaster NBC. According to Cal Fire, the so-called "Toll" fire had been brought under control on 15 percent of the area by Tuesday afternoon. Calls to evacuate were therefore lifted again.

According to Cal Fire, more than 500 firefighters are battling the flames in Oroville. The exact cause of the forest fire is still being investigated. Pictures and videos on social media and in the local news show several buildings on fire, with helicopters dropping water on the burning areas.

Forest fires occur again and again in California during extreme heat, severe drought and thunderstorms. According to the National Weather Service, a new heatwave could even push temperatures to more than 40 degrees Celsius for the US national holiday on July 4.

A warning for extreme fire weather and excessive heat is in place for large parts of the state. The weather service warned of a combination of strong winds with speeds of over 40 km/h, low humidity and high temperatures.

SDA