California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency Sunday as wildfires across the state forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes. “We are deploying every resource available, and are coordinating with numerous agencies as we continue to respond to these fires,” Newsom said, noting that the high winds across the state fueling the fires are “unprecedented.” Over a dozen fires are burning throughout California, but the largest is the Kincade fire in Northern California, which has burned more than 30,000 acres in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco, since breaking out Wednesday. Authorities have ordered over 180,000 people to evacuate the area. As of Sunday night the fire was only 10 percent contained.
Nearly 1,000 firefighters are working to contain the Tick fire in Southern California, which was burning 4,600 acres in northern Los Angeles as of Sunday morning. The New York Times reports that at least three new fires were sparked on Sunday, one of which covers 600 acres about 100 miles north of the Kincade fire. As of Sunday night, California’s largest utility company Pacific Gas and Energy Co. had shut off power to nearly 1 million homes and businesses to try to prevent additional fires.
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