Hundreds of Wildfires Force Evacuations Statewide

Hundreds of Wildfires Force Evacuations Statewide

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) – Wildfires that have claimed at least five lives and forced tens of thousands of people from their homes are still raging in California. Three major collections of fires are threatening tens of thousands of homes in the San Francisco Bay Area and central California. More evacuations are expected as hot and gusty weather extends into Friday. State fire officials say at least four civilians have died in the fire areas, possibly including a Pacific Gas & Electric worker. And a helicopter pilot on a water-dropping mission died in a crash Wednesday. Many of the fires were sparked by lightning strikes in stormy weather. Four people are dead from the LNU Lightning Complex Fire continues to scorch through the North Bay Area. The blaze has burned over 215-acres of Solano, Yolo, Napa, Sonoma and Lake counties. As of last night, the fire was zero-percent contained. More than a thousand firefighters are battling the flames. Three people in Napa County and one in Solano County have died. The fires have destroyed nearly 500 structures and damaged another 125. More than 30-thousand structures are threatened.