Paradise, California, which was devastated by wildfires in 2018, is once again facing an active wildfire threat as the Park Fire spreads across Northern California.
Paradise was one of several communities in Butte County, California, that were issued wildfire-related evacuation warnings this weekend. The intensity and spread of the wildfire was reminiscent of the 2018 Camp Fire, which killed 85 people and destroyed 11,000 homes in nearby Paradise.
The Park Fire has exploded since it began on Wednesday, now burning more than 550 square miles — an area larger than Los Angeles. By Sunday afternoon, the blaze was 12 percent contained.
Jay Tracy, a spokesman for the Parkland Fire Department, told The Associated Press that emergency crews were focused on battling the blaze head-on rather than prioritizing saving lives and property. About 3,400 firefighters and numerous helicopters and air tankers were battling the blaze on Sunday, Tracy told The Associated Press.
“This fire has taken a lot of people by surprise with how explosive it has grown,” Tracy said. “It’s unprecedented.”
The fire continued to spread westward on Sunday, but Cal Fire operations chief Jeremy Pierce said the southernmost part of the Park Fire, closest to Paradise, was in “very good condition,” The Associated Press reported.
Tracy told The Associated Press that the Park Fire has destroyed at least 66 buildings and damaged five others.
“Unfortunately, that number will probably increase,” Tracy said. “Every day that passes, the number can grow. Our teams, naturally, are not surveying damage when there is fire burning in the area.”
The Park Fire in Northern California was one of more than 100 wildfires burning in the U.S. on Sunday, according to the National Joint Fire Center.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
