Wildfire Explodes To Over 370K Acres As Other Blazes Burn Across State

CALIFORNIA — Crews were working Monday to contain wildfires throughout the state, including a massive blaze in Northern California that has become one of the largest in history.

The Park Fire in Butte, Plumas, Shasta and Tehama counties has become the sixth-largest wildfire in California's history. The blaze has burned 370,237 acres and was only 12% contained as of Monday morning, according to Cal Fire. The fire has destroyed 109 homes and other structures and damaged five others.

The fire, which started Wednesday and exploded in size over the weekend, has drawn comparisons to the 2018 Camp Fire that ripped through the nearby community of Paradise, killing 85 people and destroying 11,000 homes.

A total of 4,876 firefighters were battling the Park Fire Monday with 33 helicopters, 434 engines, 166 dozers and 116 water tenders.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said "all hands are on deck" in the efforts to contain the growing fire.

"You're hearing aerial assets above, putting all hands on deck," Newsom said in a video posted Sunday on X. "Over 2,500 personnel working the fire, working to hold the line, doing what they can."

Investigators believe arson started the blaze. A man was arrested on suspicion of arson after he was seen pushing a car that was on fire into a gully in Butte County's Upper Bidwell Park.

As of Monday, there were more than 20 other active wildfires burning across the state.

The next largest was the SQF Lightning Complex, a trio of wildfires in the Sequoia National Forest.

The fires sparked July 13 and have scorched a combined 85,583 acres in Kern and Tulare counties. Roughly 2,000 people were ordered to evacuate due to the fires, which were 33% contained Monday, according to Cal Fire.

No fatalities or injuries have been reported in either the Park Fire or the SQF Lightning Complex.

Smaller wildfires burn elsewhere in the state, including the Creek Fire, which has blackened 744 acres in Alameda County. The fire was 35% contained Monday. The Point Fire, which burned 471 acres in Contra Costa County, was 92% contained.

In Southern California, a brush fire in the Temecula area led to evacuation orders on Monday afternoon just days after a separate wildfire nearby destroyed a structure.