Northern California wildfires remain dangerous amid searing heatwave

Authorities said winds, low humidity and dry vegetation would pose challenges to crews working to contain two fires that sparked on Friday and quickly burned through tinder-dry grass. The Mill fire rapidly overtook a neighborhood on the edge of the small city of Weed, forcing residents to flee immediately.

Hundreds of firefighters from across the state were helping to battle the blazes in the rural region near the Oregon border. They had achieved about 25% containment on the Mill fire, which had burned through nearly 7 sq miles in Siskiyou county. The blaze had destroyed 50 structures, according to Cal Fire, and injured three people. Two were brought to a local hospital and one was transferred to UC Davis Medical Center, which has a burn unit.

Crews had contained 5% of the Mountain fire, which was at about 10 square miles. More than 1,300 people were under evacuation in the areas affected by the fires. Temperatures in Weed could climb as high as 103F (39C) in the coming days.

The fires have worsened, said Bob West, a lifelong resident who co-owns a local coffee and sandwich shop and has had to evacuate twice for a fire.

California is in the midst of a severe heatwave that is bringing days of triple-digit temperatures to large swaths of the state.

The heat would make outdoor work dangerous, Swain said, including for firefighting crews battling blazes while carrying heavy gear. Earlier this week, seven firefighters were sent to hospital after suffering heat injuries while working on the Route fire in southern California.

Thomas Ewald, the Los Angeles county fire department deputy chief, said then that more heat emergencies were expected.