The Park fire’s intensity and dramatic spread led fire officials to make unwelcome comparisons to the monstrous Camp fire, which burned out of control in nearby Paradise in 2018, killing 85 people and torching 11,000 homes.
More than 130 structures have been destroyed by this fire and thousands more are threatened as evacuations were ordered in four counties.
It had consumed more than 140,000ha (348,000 acres) by yesterday and was moving quickly north and east after igniting on Thursday when authorities said a man pushed a burning car into a gully in Chico and then calmly blended in with others fleeing the scene.
"There’s a tremendous amount of fuel out there and it’s going to continue with this rapid pace," Cal Fire incident commander Billy See said.
The fire was advancing up to 20sq km an hour, he said.
Communities elsewhere in the US west and Canada were under siege from a fast-moving blaze sparked by lightning, which sent people fleeing on fire-ringed roads in rural Idaho to a new blaze that was causing evacuations in eastern Washington.
More than 102 large, active fires were being managed nationwide yesterday, according to the National Interagency Fire Centre. They have burned at least 822,840ha.
Some were caused by the weather, with climate change increasing the frequency of lightning strikes as the region endures record heat and bone-dry conditions.
Oregon has the biggest active blaze in the United States, the Durkee fire that had burned through 116,828ha by yesterday.
It remained unpredictable and was only 27% contained yesterday, according to the government website InciWeb.
• Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has posted a message on social media platform X thanking first responders and firefighters from New Zealand, Australia, Mexico and South Africa for their help in battling a huge wildfire raging in Jasper National Park, and the town of Jasper, where major damage was sustained.
Authorities from the national park said 358 of the 1113 structures in town were destroyed by the fire, which was caused by a lightning storm. However, all critical infrastructure was protected. — AP/agencies
