OROVILLE, Calif. — Firefighters lined roads to keep flames from reaching homes as helicopters dropped water on a growing wildfire Wednesday in Northern California that forced at least 13,000 people to evacuate, with another day of extreme heat forecast.
The Thompson Fire started before noon Tuesday, about 70 miles north of Sacramento, in and around the city of Oroville in Butte County. It emitted a huge plume of smoke and grew to nearly 4.7 square miles (12.1 square kilometers) by Wednesday morning. It was zero percent contained.
The city of about 20,000 declared a state of emergency on Tuesday night. Several homes were destroyed, KCRA-TV reported Wednesday. There were no reports of injuries. Two evacuation centers have been set up in Butte County.
More high temperatures above 100 degrees (37.8 Celsius) were forecast Wednesday, the National Weather Service said.
The governor’s office announced Tuesday that federal funding has been approved to help with firefighting efforts. Governor Gavin Newsom this week activated the State Operations Center to coordinate California’s response, send mutual aid and support communities as they respond to threats from wildfires and excessive heat.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
