Entire California Town Destroyed; Tens of Thousands Flee in Los Angeles, Ventura Counties

The largest inferno, sparked Thursday morning in Northern California, prompted numerous evacuations, including several entire towns. The Butte County Sheriff 's Office told the Associated Press, which is mandatory for the entire city of Paradise, which is home to about 27,000 people and is north of Sacramento.

"Pretty much the community of Paradise is destroyed, it's that kind of devastation," said Cal Fire Capt. Scott McLean late Thursday. "The wind has been predicted and just wiped it out."

Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said Thursday evening news conference that the fire had claimed several lives and injured others, including two firefighters.

At the same news conference, Butte County Fire Chief Cal Darren Read said several hundred buildings, possibly as many as 1,000 or more, were destroyed in Paradise, though they would not have seen them. Another 15,000 are threatened, according to CalFire.

"The whole town's on fire, "Paradise councilman Scott Lotter, who evacuated with his family, told the Sacramento Bee earlier Thursday." It's pretty grim. "

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Officials confirmed to the AP that some residents have been forced to escape from their homes in the past. With few options out of Paradise, roads soon became gridlocked, and left behind worse.

"It's pure chaos up here, "CHP public information officer Ryan Lambert told the Los Angeles Times.

Fueled by dry, windy conditions, the Fire Camp quickly spread to more than 31 square miles within about 12 hours and forced the closure of several roads, according to Cal Fire. The fire is 0 percent contained and it is not known what sparked it.

"Right now, Mother Nature is in charge," Cal Fire spokesman Bryce Bennett told the Sacramento Bee.

Other cities being evacuated include Centerville and Butte Creek, northwest of Paradise. Evacuations were also ordered in the nearby hamlets of Pulga and Concow.

"It's bad, "Honea told the Chico Enterprise-Record." We're trying to get as quickly as possible and save as many lives as we can. "

In Concow, some residents, like Colton Percifield, were forced to drive through the flames and smoke just to survive.

"The weather is not visible … it was pitch black," he told The Weather Channel in a phone interview Thursday night. He also said many of the homes in his neighborhood were destroyed by the fire, but he was able to safely escape.

Feather River Hospital, Ponderosa Elementary School in Paradise was evacuated, the Enterprise-Record also said, and Butte College was closed.

Patients in the Feather River Hospital were rescued Thursday afternoon as the roof of the emergency room went ablaze.

The rapid growth of the fire took many residents by surprise. Shary Bernacett said she and her husband "knocked on doors, yelled and screamed" to alert them to the fact that they were in Paradise just minutes before the fire arrived, she told the AP.

"My husband tried his best to get everybody out. Bernacett, in tears, told the AP.

The dog managed to escape the fire with their dog 12-foot-high-flames before reaching safety on Highway 99.

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At least 24,000 homes and businesses, or others, Friday morning in Butte County, according to PowerOutage.us. Those who have safely fled the wildfire were asked to register on the American Red Cross's Safe and Well page to let friends and family know they successfully evacuated.

Acting governor Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency for Butte County, which will make more resources available for emergency responders.

Much of the Golden State has been warned about extreme fire danger in the face of the wind, but in Butte County.

"Basically, we have not had it before or before," Read told the AP. "Everything is a very receptive fuel bed. It's a rapid rate of spread."

Southern California Fires Force Evacuations

Thursday afternoon, a couple of brushes were sparked in Ventura County, threatening homes and businesses in the Newbury Park area. The largest, named the Fire Hill, exploded in size and burned at least 12.5 square miles in the first two hours, Cal Fire said. By Friday morning, it had grown to 15 square miles.

The blaze came down the hills and jumped the Freeway, prompting officials to issue mandatory evacuations for the Cal State University Channel Islands campus. Before that, the evacuations were ordered for the Camarillo Springs area After the fire was sparked at about 2 p.m. local time, according to the L.A. Times.

Authorities shut down the 101 Freeway in both directions at Camarillo Springs Road.

Local news helicopters broadcast visuals of structures being burned by the late Thursday afternoon.

Santa Rosa Valley, about 10 miles northwest of Thousand Oaks.

Woolsey Fire

The other fire burning in Ventura County, named the Woolsey Fire, was sparked at Woolsey Canyon and was moving in the direction of Oak Park, fire officials said.

Fueled by dry conditions at 12.5 square miles, the Ventura Fire Department reported Friday morning. Approximately 75,000 homes are under mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders in Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

The blaze moved into Los Angeles County late Thursday, Westlake Village, areas of Calabasas and Cheeseboro Canyon.

"It is critical that residents pay close attention to evacuation orders. This is a very dangerous wind-driven fire, "the L.A. County Fire Department said in a tweet.

So far, the blaze has damaged or destroyed 20 homes and threatens another 30,000, the Los Angeles Times reports.