Western wildfires live updates: 3 more bodies found in northern California
Wildfires continued ravaging portions of the western United States on Saturday, stoked by gusty winds and dry conditions.
Although some weather relief appears to be en route in the coming days, millions of acres have already burned. Homes and businesses have been engulfed, and injuries to both residents and first responders continue mounting. More than a dozen deaths, including at least 10 in California, have been reported.
Here are the latest updates:
3 more bodies found in northern California
Update 10:06 p.m. EDT Sept. 12: Search and rescue workers found three more bodies in the ruins caused by a northern California wildfire, boosting the death total for that blaze to 12 and the state’s total fatality rate to 22, according to The Associated Press.
According to Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea, 13 people are still unaccounted for. He did not provide additional details, the AP reported.
Sheriff: 5 dead in Oregon’s Almeda fire
Update 9:21 p.m. EDT Sept. 12: Nathan Sickler, the sheriff of Jackson County, Oregon, told reporters that his department is investigating at least five human remains found in the aftermath of the Almeda fire.
“So far we have been able to determine, we believe that we have recovered five (human) remains from different locations in the county,” Sickler said.
Sickler said his department is not releasing the addresses where the remains where found, out of respect for the families of those people who may be deceased, KTVL reported. He added that search and recovery missions are still in progress.
Oregon’s fire marshal abruptly resigns
Update 7:25 p.m. EDT Sept. 12: Oregon’s fire marshal resigned Saturday as wildfires raged across the state. has resigned amid an unprecedented spate of wildfires that are burning throughout the state.
According to the Oregon State Police, Jim Marshall was put on paid administrative leave Saturday, The Oregonian reported. Later in the day, state police said its superintendent accepted a resignation offer from Walker, the newspaper reported.
It was not immediately clear why Walker was put on leave.
Mariana Ruiz-Temple was named to replace Walker, The Oregonian reported.
“Mariana has led with grace, transparency and courage,” Gov. Kate Brown said in a statement. “She embodies the experience Oregon needs to face this crisis, in this moment.”
Poor air quality stretches across entire West Coast
Update 6:19 p.m. EDT Sept. 12: Smoke generated by wildfires in California, Oregon and Washington are having an effect on air quality on the West Coast.
According to AirNow.gov, the air quality in Portland and Vancouver, Washington, is hazardous, while Seattle is unhealthy, according to air quality indexes.
The Air Quality Index operates on a scale from 0 to 500, the website reported. The higher the AQI value, the greater the level of air pollution, which also elevates health concerns. An AQI higher than 300 means hazardous conditions.
Portland had a 370 AGI, while Vancouver Washington had a 327 reading. Seattle had a 227 total. Most regions in the San Francisco Bay Area saw AQI values between 175 and 185, and Los Angeles recorded an AQI of 170.
According to Canadian government officials, the air quality index in Vancouver, Canada, was in the upper 190s Saturday morning, which is classified as “unhealthy” and bordering on “very unhealthy,” SFGate.com reported. The Air Quality Index operates on a scale from 0 to 500, the website reported. The higher the AQI value, the greater the level of air pollution, which also elevates health concerns. An AQI higher than 300 means hazardous conditions.
The air quality in Tijuana, Mexico, was also classified as unhealthy with an AQI of 177 on Saturday morning, according to Swiss website IQAir.
Trump to visit wildfire-ravaged California
Update 2:17 p.m. EDT Sept. 12: President Donald Trump plans to visit wildfire-ravaged California on Monday.
Wildfires throughout the state have scorched hundreds of thousands of acres and left several people dead.
The president will visit McClellan Park in Sacramento County, KGO reported.
Creek Fire swells to nearly 200,000 acres
Update 12:17 p.m. EDT Sept. 12: The Creek Fire has grown to nearly 200,000 acres while firefighters have contained about 6% of the blaze.
The fires are becoming less intense as cooler temperatures and increased humidity move through the area, the Fresno Bee reported.
On Saturday, there were 1,811 firefighters battling the Creek Fire. There are 16,000 firefighters working to put out the 28 major wildfires raging in California.
The Creek Fire is considered the state’s 16th largest conflagration since officials starting tracking them in 1932.
2,700 inmates evacuated from Oregon prisons
Update 11:37 a.m. EDT Sept. 12: Authorities have evacuated more than 2,700 inmates from various Oregon prisons as wildfires encroach correctional facilities.
More than 1,300 female inmates were evacuated from the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility on Thursday because of fire threats in Marion and Clackamas counties. About 1,400 inmates from three other correctional facilities were moved earlier in the week.
Inmates at the Santiam Correctional Institution, Mill Creek Correctional Facility and Oregon State Correctional Institution were moved to the Oregon State Penitentiary. Black inmates from Santiam and Mill Creek were moved back Thursday. Other inmates from the Oregon State Correctional Institution are still at the state penitentiary.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
16-year-old identified as victim of North Complex fire
Update 12:37 a.m. EDT Sept. 12: A 16-year-old high school student has been identified as the first victim of a fire that destroyed Berry Creek, California.
Josiah Williams was overtaken by flames before he could escape, according to The Fresno Bee.
“He was supposed to leave when his brother did, but he didn’t,” Williams’ aunt, Bobbie Zedaker, told the newspaper. “I have no idea why.”
Zedaker said authorities had asked Williams’ brother for DNA to establish the identity of a victim found in Berry Creek, according to the Bee.
The teen, known as JoJo, was among nine people killed in the North Complex blaze, which includes the Bear fire and is among California’s deadliest, according to the Los Angeles Times.
