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United States: fire spreads near Los Angeles, residents evacuated

A violent fire has been underway in California since Wednesday November 6.

Located near Los Angeles, the fire has already covered thousands of hectares.

Residents were evacuated and several people were taken to hospital.

The fire season continues in California (United States). A fire has spread rapidly since Wednesday, November 6 in the northwest of Los Angeles, destroying houses and agricultural land, fueled by violent winds which brought it to the gates of the upscale suburbs of a city of 70,000 inhabitants.

The authorities ordered residents of the areas most at risk to evacuate, north of the city of Camarillo, located about sixty kilometers from the center of Los Angeles. Several injured people were taken to hospital and many buildings were threatened by flames.

AFP

Houses destroyed by flames

The hills overlooking the town of Camarillo and its 70,000 inhabitants are enveloped in a thick cloud of smoke and the winds, which reach 130 km/h, are expected to persist until the end of the day this Thursday and complicate the work of the firefighters, who cannot fully deploy their air assets. The fire broke out on Wednesday morning and already covered more than 3,600 hectares by mid-afternoon. Several homes, including luxury homes, but also agricultural fields and orchards, were destroyed by the flames, according to firefighters.

More than 21,000 homes are without power, with California usually cutting power to avoid causing new fires fueled by high winds and overloaded networks. A few dozen kilometers further south, another fire broke out near Malibu, threatening the luxury properties that dot the coast.

AFP
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After two rainy winters which provided a relative respite, California is experiencing a very active fire season this year. The “Golden State” suffered several heat waves this summer, signs of global warming, and suffered the fourth largest fire in its history in July-August.


IN with AFP

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