More than 1,000 people are listed as missing in the wake of the Northern California wildfire known as the Camp Fire, authorities say. It’s a number that has ballooned rapidly and is expected to continue to fluctuate. The Butte County Sheriff’s Office had said on Thursday evening there were 631 people unaccounted for.
However, that number may include people who escaped to safety and do not realize they are being searched for.
After The Fire, The Town Of Paradise Lies In An Ashy Quiet
The death toll also rose after eight sets of remains were discovered on Friday. At least 71 people have died in the fire, which has burned through more than 220 square miles of land and consumed the town of Paradise.
The fire is the deadliest, and the most destructive, in California history. Nearly 10,000 homes have been destroyed.
So over the last few decades, Paradise grew somewhat haphazardly. For it’s a place where you could find affordable housing. Most noteworthy in a state where that’s hard to come by. As the town expanded, more houses were built. All in a landscape known to be fire-prone.
Now the streets of Paradise are busy only with trucks from Pacific Gas & Electric and those of relief workers looking for the bodies of those who could not escape the blaze.
Source: NPR
