Northern California forest fire rages in its fourth day

Thousands of evacuees struggled to keep their emotions in check while trying to take care of themselves and their pets like a deadly trail of powder in Northern California.

Anna Noland, 49, was evacuated twice days before learning by video footage that the house she had last seen under a dark and windy sky had burned.

She was waiting to spend Saturday night at the asylum at Simpson College in Redding. I think I'm still in shock, "said Noland." Noland is one of 38,000 evacuees after the bombardment of Carr Fire in the Redding suburb of Shasta County, killing five people, including two firefighters wife and two great-grandchildren, ages 4 and 5.

"My babies are dead," said Sherry Bledsoe after meeting Shasta County sheriff's members. On Monday, the fire exploded and ran into communities to the west of Redding before entering the city limits.

On Saturday, he pushed southwest of Redding, the largest city in the region. Ono, Igo and Gas Point, where scorching heat, winds and drought have complicated firefighting efforts

The fire, which rose slightly Saturday at 340 square kilometers, is the largest in California. Nearly 5,000 structures were threatened and the fire was contained at only 5%.

The last count of 536 structures destroyed rose from 500 earlier in the day, and it is certain that it will increase. An account by the Associated Press found at least 300 of these structures were houses.

Bonnie and Jerry Kieffaber seized most of their medication when they left their home in Redding on Thursday, but they forgot their insulin. A few days later, the police will not let them in because it is still too dangerous.

Bonnie Kieffaber, 69, says being away from home is expensive

"All our food was there, and now we are exhausted. our checking account trying to keep the gas in the car and buy food too, "she said while taking a hot meal in a Red Cross shelter

" C & # 39 is exhausting, "she said. "The heat and stress of all this, and pray for everyone and all our friends."

Firefighters killed in the fire included Don Ray Smith, 81, of Pollock Pines, a bulldozer operator who helped clear vegetation. the path of the forest fire. Redding fire inspector Jeremy Stoke was also killed, but details of his death were not released.

Sherry Bledsoe's two children, James Roberts, 5 and Emily Roberts, 4, were stranded with their great grandmother Melody Bledsoe Flames swept the family's rural property on Thursday on the outskirts of Redding

The three were among more than a dozen people missing after the furious fire took the residents by surprise and razed several neighborhoods.

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said he was expecting to find many of these people alive and simply disconnected from their loved ones. The police went to the homes of missing persons and found missing cars – a strong indication that they fled.

About 100 miles (160 kilometers) southwest of Redding, two fires caused mandatory evacuations in Mendocino County. The two fires, burning at 50 km distance, began Friday and threatened more than 350 buildings

Authorities also issued evacuation orders in Napa County, famous for its wine, when several structures have caught fire. reported. The fire had blackened 150 acres and was confined to 10%

All over the state, Cal Fire officials said more than 10,000 firefighters were in danger, advancing 14 large forest fires

. Yosemite National Park and in the San Jacinto Mountains in east Los Angeles near Palm Springs. These fires burned nearly 100 square miles (260 square kilometers).

The Yosemite Valley has remained closed to visitors and will not reopen until Friday.

In Shasta County, Matt Smith, a forest service pilot with 13 years of experience as a smoke breaker, he used pipes to save his home in the well-maintained Redding Lake Estates area

Bicycle frames, refrigerators and burnt and twisted piles of rubble still smoked Saturday around his property. He says he came home Thursday while the evacuees were racing.

"Keep it for your family, keep it for your family," he says, remembering for two hours full of adrenaline. he always kept an escape route in mind – maybe his neighbor's pool.

On Saturday, he had a burn in his hand catching his propane tank and ripping it at home. His nose and ear also had burns.

"The good news is that our house is there, but the bad news is that our neighborhood is devastated," he said

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. Martha Mendoza, Deputy Press Editor, Redding; Olga Rodriguez and Janie Har in San Francisco; Don Thompson in Sacramento; Amanda Lee Myers in Los Angeles also contributed to this report.