Thousands of firefighters battling a massive northern California wildfire were working in milder temperatures and higher humidity Monday, but the blaze that has destroyed more than 100 structures since it began five days ago continues to grow.

The Park Fire, which officials said was started by a man who pushed a flaming car into a gully, grew slightly overnight to 368,000 acres (148,924 hectares). The sixth largest wildfire in state history is rolling through a remote area some 180 miles (290 km) northeast of San Francisco, according to Cal Fire.

Crews were “still in for quite a firefight today, just because (of) the sheer magnitude and the sheer size of the fire,” said Dan Collins, a Cal Fire captain, noting that temperatures were to be in the high 80s with 25% percent humidity during the day.

Some 4,800 firefighters were building and strengthening control lines on Monday morning hoping to increase the 12% they had contained. The more favorable weather conditions compared to those they faced over the past several days were helping, Collins added.

Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said in a statement that the accused arson suspect, Ronnie Dean Stout II, was jailed without bond on a Butte County judge’s warrant after he was identified as the person seen pushing a flaming car into a gully on Wednesday afternoon.

The fire rapidly grew, doubling in size from Friday to Sunday and destroying at least 114 structures in four counties.

The fire has also caused officials to issue evacuation warnings and orders to several communities, including Paradise, the town that was devastated by the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest in the state’s history.

Cal Fire also reported on Monday that 33% of the SQF Lightning Complex was contained. That fire has raged for the past two weeks some 350 miles (563 km) to the south of the Park Fire. Part of that complex, dubbed the Borel Fire, swept through Havilah, torching much of that historic gold mining town on Friday.

The Park and Borel fires were just two of the 102 large active fires burning nationwide. A total of 25 had forced evacuations as of Monday morning, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

A cold front in the Pacific Northwest, where many of the fires burn, was forecast to bring rain and thunderstorms to the region on Monday. However, the system will carry strong wind gusts of up to 50 miles (80 km) per hour that could hamper firefighting efforts, the center said in a statement.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

In Oregon, several fires were burning, including the Durkee Fire, which had scorched more than 2,88,000 acres in the eastern part of the state.
| Photo Credit: AP

Thousands of firefighters were battling with a rapidly growing wildfire in northern California on July 27 after the blaze doubled in size in a 24-hour span.

“The Park Fire had burnt more than 3,50,000 acres (1,41,640 hectares) about 144 km (90 miles) north of the state capital city of Sacramento as of July 27 evening,” according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection or Cal Fire.

Also Read: Explained | How climate change drives heatwaves and wildfires in Europe

Cooler temperatures and more humid air were expected in the region, potentially helping efforts to slow the spread of the fire, which was 10% contained as of July 27 evening. “The fire has destroyed 134 structures,” authorities said.

Evacuation orders and warnings were issued for multiple communities in several counties, including a warning for Paradise, the town that was devastated by the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest in the state’s history.

“U.S. President Joe Biden has been briefed on the fire and has directed his team to do everything possible to support efforts to fight it,” a White House official said. A man was arrested on July 25 on suspicion that he started the Park Fire by pushing a flaming car into a gully on July 24 afternoon.

Watch | How wildfires are ravaging the world

“The fire was the largest of dozens of active blazes across the country that have burnt more than two million acres,” according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

“In Oregon, several fires were burning, including the Durkee Fire, which had scorched more than 2,88,000 acres in the eastern part of the state,” authorities said.

“A firefighter died after a single-engine tanker crashed near the Falls Fire in southeastern Oregon,” the U.S. Forest Service said in a statement on July 26.

Thirteen people have been arrested following a forest fire on the Greek island of Hydra, which authorities believe was started by fireworks launched from a yacht. The fire, which started on Friday, devastated the island’s sole pine forest. Although now under control, the fire presented significant challenges for firefighters who had to access the area by sea and use helicopters to drop water due to the lack of roads leading to the beach.

Hydra, southwest of Athens in the Saronic Gulf, is popular among foreign visitors and those travelling on yachts.

The latest blaze was ”caused by fireworks launched from a boat and burned the only pine forest on the island in a place that is difficult to access and has no road”, Hydra’s firefighting team said on Facebook.

In a statement on Saturday, Greek authorities confirmed the arrest of 13 Greek citizens who are scheduled to appear before prosecutors on Sunday. An official said the people were arrested at an Athens area marina.

The incident has caused widespread outrage in Greece, which is already grappling with multiple wildfires amidst its first heatwave of the year. The country has been on high alert for wildfires due to dry conditions, strong winds, and high temperatures, which are expected to persist throughout the summer. Officials say 64 forest and brush fires have broken out in Greece over the past 24 hours. 

Hydra’s mayor, Giorgos Koukoudakis, expressed anger over the reckless actions that led to the fire. 

“We are indignant that some people so irresponsibly throw fireworks into a pine forest,” Hydra’s mayor, Giorgos Koukoudakis, told Greek broadcaster ERT.

In a related incident, a 55-year-old volunteer firefighter succumbed to injuries sustained while combating a fire in the Ilia region of the Peloponnese peninsula.

Scientists have warned that fossil fuel emissions caused by humans are worsening the length and intensity of heat waves around the world.

Additionally, arson remains a significant problem, with 79 people arrested for arson last August. To combat this, Greece increased penalties for both deliberate and negligent arson last year, introducing fines of up to 200,000 Euro and jail sentences of up to 20 years​

Jammu:

Several mines exploded due to a forest fire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district on Thursday and blaze also erupted in the forest areas of Samba and Jammu districts, causing significant damage, officials said.

In Samba, the fire started in the Purmandal area and soon spread to nearby villages threatening several residential houses, they said.

The villagers alerted the administration, prompting them to send fire tenders to the area and the blaze was doused after effort of several hours, the officials said.

The locals alleged that some criminals are triggering fire due to some vested interests and destroying forest land. They urged the administration to take stern action against those involved in the forest fire.

According to the officials, several mines exploded due to forest fire along the Line of Control (LoC) in the forward area of Mankote in Mendhar sub-sector in Poonch district.

The blaze started from across the LoC and spread to this side, they said.

In a similar incident in Jammu, a fire broke out in the Choki Chora area and spread to adjoining areas of Chora, Khardoon, Padoon, Bamla, Keri and Kandi, spread across several hectares of forest land, the officials said.

The forest department officials and local residents launched an operation to extinguish the flames, successfully bringing the fire under control after several hours, they said.

There was no loss of life or injury to anyone in both the incidents, they added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

An Indian Air Force helicopter was pressed into service to extinguish the raging forest fires in villages of Srikot in Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand on Monday.

An M-17 helicopter was deployed to assist in the firefighting operations.

State’s Chief Secretary, Radha Raturi, announced today a series of measures aimed at controlling the spread of the flames and mitigating further damage.

Ms Raturi said that the Air Force has been called in to aid firefighting efforts, and plans are underway to implement a pilot cloud seeding project to induce rainfall in the affected regions.

“The Chief Minister held a meeting the day before. For compliance with those directions, the Forest Department has been informed. The Forest Department has given responsibility for each district to its senior officials. Pauri Garhwal is facing the worst. For that, DM Pauri has also spoken with the Air Force. IAF choppers are now carrying water from Srinagar and sprinkling it on the affected area,” Ms Raturi said told news agency ANI.

To prevent further incidents, the state government has banned the burning of agricultural residues and waste in urban areas. This ban comes in response to widespread stubble burning after wheat harvesting, which has been linked to the increased risk of forest fires.

While appealing to Uttarakhand residents for their cooperation, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said, “Forest wealth is our heritage which we have to protect at all costs.”

Since November last year, there have been 910 incidents of forest fire in the state, due to which about 1145 hectares of forest have been affected.