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- Half a million people have been evacuated from the state of Oregon, local authorities said.
- The reason for the gigantic rescue operation is the wildfires on the west coast of the United States.
- In neighboring California, the fire department reports the largest wildfire in recent history in terms of area.
“Approximately 500,000 people in Oregon have been evacuated and that number continues to grow,” an official statement said. Firefighters battled wildfires that spanned 365,000 acres across Oregon, “a record.”
Many deaths are feared, said Andrew Phelps of the civil protection agency. The full extent of the destruction is not yet known.
More than 20 deaths
According to media reports, more than 20 people have died in the devastating wildfires on the west coast of the United States. At least 26 people died in California, Oregon and Washington, according to USA Today and the US broadcaster CNN. Authorities fear many more deaths.
In California alone, more than 14,800 firefighters fought 28 major wildfires, authorities said. The August Complex Fire, a collection of 37 fires, was declared the largest fire in the state’s history. Since it struck the Mendocino Forest on August 17, it has covered more than 190,000 hectares of land.
4000 square kilometers are burning
Oregon Governor Kate Brown described the fires in her state as “unprecedented.” More than 4,000 square kilometers of land would be on fire. According to media reports, thousands of firefighters are fighting more than 40 fires here.
Never before have we seen so much uncontrolled fire in our state.
At least five cities are “significantly destroyed”. In just three days, the flames would have consumed twice the vegetation that burns on average in a year, Brown said.
Wildfires are breaking out in a dozen states in the western United States, including Utah, Wyoming, Arizona, Colorado and Idaho, according to the federal agency’s National Interagency Fire Center. Almost 28,000 firefighters and other emergency services fought the flames in the affected region.
