Rain hampers research but helps to extinguish California fire

Volunteers wearing helmets, respirators and yellow rain pants searched through ashes and debris for human remains following a forest fire in northern California, but a shower Friday has turned the ashes into a thick paste, making it more difficult to find revealing fragments. of bones and forcing them to temporarily stop their work.

Craig Covey, who heads a research team from Orange County, Southern California, said that those who roamed the ravages of Paradise and two neighboring communities have not been told of safety. stop but that he had chosen to pause until the rain fell.

Heavy rains and high winds toppled trees, increasing the risk of falling, he said.

"It's just not worth it – we're not saving lives right now, we're recovering," Covey said of the unsafe conditions.

The most deadly forest fires of the last century have killed at least 84 people and more than 560 people are still missing. Despite the mild weather, more than 800 volunteers searched for Thanksgiving remains and again Friday, two weeks after the flames swept the Sierra Nevada hills, authorities said.

The team of about 30 people from Covey had been working for several hours on Friday morning before stopping and returning to a gathering area with hot coffee and food under two blue tents. An electric radiator provided heat.

While the rain makes everyone colder and wetter, they keep their mission in mind, said research volunteer Chris Stevens, standing under a canopy, while the team was waiting for some of heavy rain.

"Everyone here is very committed to helping people here," he said.

Two days of showers complicated the search, but they also helped to extinguish the fire almost completely, said Josh Bischof, head of operations for the California Department of Forests and Fire Protection.

Once the rain has fallen, officials will be able to determine if the fire is completely extinguished, he said.

The camp fire caught fire on November 8 and destroyed nearly 19,000 buildings, most of which were houses. That's more than the eight worst fires in California history combined, the agency said, with thousands of displaced people.

On Friday, volunteers interrupted by the rain found other ways to help.

Covey and several members of the team took two big brown bags full of lunch to Stewart Nugent, 64, who stayed at home and fought the flames with a gazebo, sprinkler and shovel. He has been here for two weeks with his cat, Larry.

The first winter storm that hit California has dropped 2 to 4 inches of rain on the burned area since its start Wednesday, said Craig Shoemaker of the National Weather Service in Sacramento.

The weather service issued a warning about potential flash floods and debris flows from areas affected by major fires in northern California, including burned areas in Paradise.

Shoemaker said the rain was stable and forecasters expect the most heavy showers in the afternoon.

"Until now, we have seen about a quarter of an inch of rain falling per hour," he said. "We have to see an inch of rain an hour before we get into trouble."

He added that the rain should abate at midnight, followed by light showers on Saturday.