California wildfires: Camp Fire kills 42 to become deadliest in state history as Trump approves major disaster declaration

Fires across state have killed 44 in total with hundreds still missing

California fire officials give update on Woolsey wildfire

The total death toll from wildfires across California has risen to 44, after 13 more people were found dead in what is now the deadliest single fire in state history.

The blaze dubbed Camp Fire in northern California has incinerated more than 7,100 homes and businesses - particularly in the town of Paradise. Its death toll exceeds that of the Griffith Park Fire in 1933, the deadliest wildfire on record in California. At least 228 people were still missing, according to Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea.

Speaking on CNN, Mr Honea said that while he holds out hope that many people listed as missing will turn up safe, “given what we’ve dealt with so far with casualties as a result of this fire, I have concerns that it [the death toll] will rise”.

Late on Monday, President Donald Trump approved a major disaster declaration for the state, which will allow it to access more federal funds. Mr Trump said he "wanted to respond quickly", although calls for the declaration have been coming for a number of days.

Hundreds of thousands of evacuation orders have been issued, while countless residents have shared images online of missing loved ones, begging people to help them find displaced relatives and friends.

In southern California, the Woolsey Fire has scorched at least 91,000 acres and destroyed 370 structures. At least two people have died in that fire, and more than 57,000 buildings still at risk.

You can find our latest report on the California wildfires here. For more on how the events of Monday unfolded, please see our now-closed live blog, below.

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Key Points

• Satellite images from Nasa reveal devastating scale of fires
• Miley Cyrus and Robin Thicke lose homes to blaze
• Donald Trump draws ire of experts for 'ill-informed' response to tragedy
• Spectrum internet goes down amid wildfires
• Trump approves 'expedited' request to declare a major disaster
• Hundreds still missing amid fears conditions could get worse

[12 November 2018 16:24 · Chris Riotta]

Here's more footage from local residents in California escaping the raging wildfires across the state:

[12 November 2018 16:36 · Chris Stevenson]

Having faced a barrage of criticism over the weekend for a tweet claiming the latest wildfires are a result of mismanagement by California authorities, Donald Trump has now sought to praise firefighters, first responders and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) over their response to the disaster.

 

[12 November 2018 16:48 · Chris Stevenson]

Following on from that tweet - in the piece below we dissect why President Trump is completely wrong to blame the latest wildfires on mismanagement, particularly given their location. It all plays into the president's skepticism over climate change.

[12 November 2018 16:58 · Chris Riotta]

Donald Trump has received heavy criticisms for his responses to the wildfires raging across California. Here, the governor's office passively rebuked the president's tweets while focusing on the deadly fires plaguing the state: 

[12 November 2018 17:09 · Chris Stevenson]

Following on from the tweet from President Trump praising the response of those on the ground to the fires, California Fire Service has now tweeted their thanks to all the surrounding states that have sent aid, including Oregon, Washington State, Utah and New Mexico.

 

[12 November 2018 17:25 · Chris Stevenson]

A press conference is due to be held at 11am local time about the Woolsey and Hill fires. That is 2pm ET/7pm GMT.

California Fire say that "strong winds" are expected to continue into the early evening today - which could help the fires increase.

 

[12 November 2018 17:36 · Chris Stevenson]

The so-called Woolsey fire has  to more than 143 square miles (370 square kilometers) with 20 percent containment as of Monday morning.  

The estimate of destroyed structures was raised to 370, with only 15 percent of damage assessments completed.  

The death toll stands at two for the Woolsey fire. 

[12 November 2018 17:37 · Chris Stevenson]

  ↵Residents have been posting images of lost relatives as the search for survivors of the fires continue.

People are also sending images looking for lost pets as the state grapples some of the deadliest fires the state has faced.

[12 November 2018 17:41 · Chris Stevenson]

Here is the up-to-date list of evacuation orders:

1. Calabasas (Woolsey fire)
2. Malibu (Woolsey Fire)
3. Point Mugu Naval Base (Hill fire)
4. South Coast – All areas outlined on map (Hill fire)
5. Bell Canyon – Entire community (Woolsey fire)
6. West of Highway 23, south of E. Olsen Road, north of Pederson Road (Woolsey fire)
7. South of Bard Lake, east of Highway 23 (Woolsey fire)
8. South of Highway 101, east of Reino Road, north of Potrero Road, east to the L.A./Ventura County line (Woolsey fire)
9. Monte Nido/Topanga — entire communities (Woolsey fire)
10. Liberty Canyon west to Decker Canyon and south to Pacific Coast Highway (Hill fire)
11. West Hills, west of Valley Circle Boulevard and between Roscoe Boulevard and Vanowen Street. (Woolsey fire)

[12 November 2018 17:53 · Chris Stevenson]

Here is some footage of a car looking to evacuate as the wildfire blazes around them in Paradise.