Latest news: Researchers take up the dark task as the rain weakens



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Latest news on California wildfires (local time):

2:45 p.m.

The research teams began searching for leftovers as the rains dissipated in paradise.

A team from Orange County is part of several teams conducting a second search in a mobile home park after a deadly fire that ravaged part of Butte County in northern California.

Working group leader Craig Covey said his team was doing a second search because there are reports of missing people whose last known address was the mobile home park.

They are looking for clues that may indicate that a person could not go out, such as a car in the driveway or a wheelchair ramp. Some workers paint debris with shovels and rakes, while others raise parts of houses torched to search for remains.

Research teams leave an orange spray paint on the asphalt to indicate that an area has been searched, if bodies have been found and if a dog has searched it.

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1:50 p.m.

More and more Southern California residents are returning home after a deadly fire.

Crews worked Friday to repair electricity, telephone and gas utilities after the Woolsey Fire, located in western Los Angeles, spanning 151 square miles (391 square kilometers ).

About 1,100 residents are still under evacuation in Malibu and the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County, compared with 250,000 at the height of the fire. The main roads were open but the authorities urged the public to stay out of the way.

Southern California Edison said that electricity was restored to nearly 39,000 customers, leaving about 2,600 without electricity.

The fire erupted on November 8 in the midst of high winds and inflamed suburban communities and natural parks to the ocean, leaving vast tracts of blackened earth and many houses burnt to the ground.

Three people were found dead. According to the authorities, 1,643 structures, most of them houses, were destroyed.

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1:35 p.m.

The first winter storm in northern California caused 2 to 4 inches of rain over the area devastated by a fire that killed at least 84 people.

Craig Shoemaker, of the National Meteorological Service, said the rain had been steady, but forecasters expect to see the heaviest showers in the leveled city of Paradise by Friday afternoon.

Shoemaker says the rain should subside at midnight, followed by light showers on Saturday.

The weather service issued a warning regarding possible flash floods and debris flows from areas affected by major fires in northern California, including the fire of Paradise and surrounding communities.

Two days of rain nearly extinguished the fire that broke out on November 8 and burned 620 square kilometers (240 square miles).

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11:40

Strong winds and heavy rains temporarily stop some crews from searching for leftovers in the aftermath of a deadly fire in northern California.

Team leader Craig Covey said Friday that people looking in the city of Paradise and two neighboring communities had not been ordered to stop, but he was choosing to make a pause for security reasons.

He says the rain and wind are knocking down the trees, increasing the risk of falling for the research staff. Covey says they'll resume searching for leftovers once the rain returns later on Friday.

He and his team find other ways to help, including bringing lunch to those who stayed at home to fight the flames.

The camp fire killed at least 84 people and destroyed nearly 14,000 houses since the start of its fires on November 8th.

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7:55

California officials said the rain had put out almost the country's deadliest fire in the last century.

The California Department of Forests and Fire Protection announced Friday that the fire that destroyed the city of Paradise was 95% under control.

The agency said the huge fire killed at least 84 people and destroyed nearly 19,000 buildings, most of which were houses.

According to officials, the camp's fire destroyed more buildings than the eight worst fires in California's history, displacing thousands of people.

The Butte County Sheriff's Office reported that more than 800 people were searching for human remains in the rubble. It is said that 563 people are still missing.

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