Lane Walker, of Magalia, comforts his wife, Julie, at an evacuation center for people displaced by the Camp Fire in Chico, California, U.S., November 15, 2018.
Rescue workers searched on Friday for 630 people reported missing in a northern California town reduced to ashes by the deadliest wildfire in state history.
At least 63 people were killed in and around Paradise by the Camp Fire that erupted a week ago in the Sierra foothills 175 miles (280 km) north of San Francisco. The fire is among the most lethal U.S. wildfires since 2000.
Authorities attribute the death toll in part to the speed with which flames raced through the town of 27,000, driven by wind and fueled by desiccated scrub and trees.
A search for victims of a catastrophic blaze that reduced a northern California town to ashes intensified on Thursday, as authorities expanded to 630 the number of those reported missing in the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in state history.At least 63 people have been confirmed dead in the Camp Fire, which erupted a week ago in the drought-parched Sierra foothills 175 miles (280 km) north of San Francisco and now ranks as one of the most lethal single U.S. wildfires since the turn of the last century.Authorities attributed the high death toll in part to the staggering speed with which the wind-driven flames, fueled by desiccated scrub and trees, raced with little warning through Paradise, a town of 27,000.Nearly 12,000 homes and buildings, including most of the town, were incinerated last Thursday night hours after the blaze erupted, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) has said.What was left was a ghostly, smoky expanse of empty lots covered in ash and strewn with twisted wreckage and debris.Thousands of additional structures were still threatened by the blaze, and as many as 50,000 people were under evacuation orders at the height of the blaze. An army of firefighters, many from distant states, labored to contain and suppress the flames.The revised official roster of 630 individuals whose whereabouts and fate remained unknown is more than double the 297 listed earlier in the day by the Butte County Sheriff's Office.Sheriff Kory Honea said nearly 300 people initially reported as unaccounted for had been found alive. He said the list of missing https://bit.ly/2BaiYxy would keep fluctuating with names being added and others removed, either because they turn up safe or are identified among the dead.The higher confirmed death toll, and rising number of those unaccounted for, were revealed at an evening news briefing by Honea, who said the remains of seven more Camp Fire victims had been located since Wednesday's tally of 56.DNA SAMPLESThe sheriff has asked relatives of the missing to submit DNA samples to hasten identification of the dead. But he acknowledged some of those unaccounted for may never be conclusively found.The Butte County disaster coincided with a flurry of smaller blazes in Southern California, including the Woolsey Fire, which has been linked with three fatalities and destroyed at least 500 structures in the mountains and foothills near the Malibu coast west of Los Angeles.The latest blazes have capped a pair of calamitous wildfire seasons in California that scientists largely attribute to prolonged drought they say is symptomatic of climate change.The cause of the fires are under investigation. But two electric utilities have said they sustained equipment problems close to the origins of the blazes around the time they were reported.The White House said on Thursday that President Donald Trump, who has been criticized as having politicized the fires by casting blame on forest mismanagement, plans to visit the fire zones on Saturday to meet displaced residents.Cal Fire said that 40 percent of the Camp Fire's perimeter had been contained, up from 35 percent, even as the blaze footprint grew 2,000 acres to 141,000 acres (57,000 hectares). Containment of the Woolsey fire grew to 57 percent.But smoke and soot spread far and wide. Public schools in Sacramento and districts 90 miles (145 km) to the south, and as far away as San Francisco and Oakland, said Friday's classes would be canceled as the Camp Fire worsened air quality.TENT CITYThose who survived the flames but lost homes were moving in temporarily with friends or relatives or bunking down in American Red Cross shelters.At a shelter set in a church in nearby Oroville, a bulletin board was plastered with dozens of photos of missing people, along with messages and phone numbers. Church officials posted lists of names they received in phone calls from people searching for friends and family. Evacuees are asked to check the boards to see if their names appear.Many others found haven at an encampment that sprang up in the parking lot outside a still-open Walmart store in Paradise, where dozens of evacuees pitched tents or slept in their cars. Part of the lot was roped off as a distribution center for clothes, food and coffee. Portable toilets were also brought in.Evacuees milling in the parking lot faced morning temperatures that dropped to just above freezing and many wore breathing masks for protection from lingering smoke.Nicole and Eric Montague, along with their 16-year-old daughter, showed up for free food but have been living with extended family in the neighboring city of Chico, in a one-bedroom apartment filled with 15 people and nine dogs.They recounted being stunned at how swiftly the fire roared through Paradise the first night."We didn’t have any time to react," Eric said. "The news didn’t even know the fire was coming. It just happened so quick."Nicole said she fled once her home's mailbox caught fire and neighbors' propane tanks began exploding. Facing walls of flames and traffic gridlock, her evacuation with her daughter was so harrowing that she called her husband to say farewell."I called him and said, 'Honey, I'm not going to make it. I love you,'" Nicole said.
Tally of missing in California's deadliest blaze surpasses 600
Nearly 12,000 homes and buildings burned hours after the blaze erupted, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) said. The fire left a ghostly expanse of empty lots covered in ash and strewn with debris.
Thousands of additional structures are still threatened as firefighters, many from distant states, labored to contain and suppress the flames.
The revised roster of 630 missing people is up from 297 listed on Thursday by the Butte County Sheriff's Office.
Sheriff Kory Honea on Thursday said the remains of seven victims have been located since Wednesday's tally of 56. Nearly 300 people reported missing have been found alive and the list of missing https://bit.ly/2BaiYxy would fluctuate, he said.
The remains of victims charred beyond recognition in the California wildfires are being identified by a pioneering DNA analysis company that primarily works in war zones and crime scenes.ANDE, the only Rapid DNA analysis company approved by the FBI for work on military, forensic, homeland security and intelligence projects, was hired by the Butte County Sheriff's office to identify remains of some of the 56 people killed in northern California's Camp Fire.Coroner-led recovery teams, cadaver dogs and a National Guard contingent scouring debris from the deadliest fire in California's history turn over tissue and bone fragments to the ANDE team, which is able to generate DNA IDs in under two hours through Rapid DNA analysis.Traditional techniques typically take weeks to generate a DNA ID."People have experienced so much loss and it's not over yet," said ANDE's chief communications officer, Annette Mattern. "To be able to at least help some families know what the situation is will hopefully help in some small way."Death toll from California wildfire reaches 56FIRST DISASTER FOR ANDEThe Butte County Sheriff’s Office called the Colorado-based company on Monday, and by Tuesday morning ANDE had set up a work site near Chico in Butte County, about 175 miles (280 km) north of San Francisco. Chico, about 10 miles from Paradise, is the base for the search and firefighting operations.The company, which has about 90 employees worldwide, designed its tools specifically to withstand war zone conditions and has worked extensively with the U.S. military. It has also helped law enforcement identify sexual assault suspects and with U.N. trafficking cases, Mattern said.But the Paradise catastrophe was the first request ANDE had received to assist in a natural disaster since its founding in 2000.In hopes of identifying DNA from remains as quickly as possible, ANDE has set up seven Rapid DNA analysis instruments near Chico and had six employees on site with more on the way on Wednesday, said the company's chief information officer, Stephen Meer, noting the level of work it expects compared to the company's usual projects."Certainly we are gearing up for higher capacity here," Meer said.Once the ANDE team finds a match between remains and DNA provided by a family member, the coroner's office is alerted so it can make an official pronouncement of death.Death certificates are required for families to settle matters as complicated as life insurance and estates and as basic as a car title, credit card or bank account. Without positive identification, families may have to wait years for a death certificate to be issued for a missing loved one, depending on state rules.Extreme heat can often destroy DNA, causing traditional DNA analysis methods to fail. Rapid DNA analysis has proven to be more effective in identifying DNA from burned remains and bone fragments, which makes it an especially valuable tool in such tragedies. 
DNA firm schooled in war zones helps ID California fire victims
DNA SAMPLES
The sheriff has asked relatives of the missing to submit DNA samples to hasten identification of the dead. But he said some of those unaccounted for may never be identified.
The were other smaller blazes in southern California including the Woolsey Fire that is linked to three fatalities and destroyed at least 500 structures near the Malibu coast west of Los Angeles.
Scientists say two seasons of devastating wildfires in California are linked to drought they say is symptomatic of climate change.
Two electric utilities say they sustained equipment problems close to the origins of the blazes around the time they were reported.
The White House said on Thursday that President Donald Trump plans to visit the fire zones on Saturday to meet displaced residents. Critics say Trump politicized the fires by casting blame on forest mismanagement.
Cal Fire said 40 percent of the Camp Fire's perimeter is contained, up from 35 percent, even as the blaze footprint grew 2,000 acres to 141,000 acres (57,000 hectares). The Woolsey fire is 57 percent contained.
Public schools in Sacramento and districts 90 miles (145 km) to the south, and as far away as San Francisco and Oakland, said Friday's classes would be canceled as the fire worsened air quality.
Many of those who survived the flames but lost homes stayed with friends or relatives or at American Red Cross shelters.