AP is reporting more than 2 million acres have burned in California so far this fire season.
That is the largest area burned by wildfires since Cal Fire started keeping records in 1987, despite the fact several months remain in this year’s fire season. The previous record, 1.96 million acres, was set in 2018.
The most dangerous part of the year is yet to come according to Lynne Tolmachoff, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.
“It’s a little unnerving because September and October are historically our worst months for fires,” she said. “It’s usually hot, and the fuels really dry out. And we see more of our wind events.”
Cal Fire said 14,800 firefighters are battling 23 major fires in the state. California has seen 900 wildfires since Aug. 15, many of them started by an intense series of thousands of lightning strikes. There have been eight fire deaths and more than 3,300 structures destroyed.
On Saturday, rescuers in military helicopters airlifted 207 people to safety after flames trapped them in a wooded camping area northeast of Fresno.