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Eric Darling and his dog Wyatt are part of a research team from Orange County, Southern California, among several teams performing a second search in a mobile home park after the murderous Camp Fire in Paradise, Calif., November 23, 2018 The team is conducting a second search as there are reports of missing persons whose last known address was in 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. (AP Photo / Kathleen Ronayne) The Associated Press
By KATHLEEN RONAYNE, Associated press
PARADISE, Calif. (AP) – A deadly forest fire is almost under control with several days of rain in northern California. But the research teams are still meticulously completing the task of filtering the ashes and debris that are now wet and muddy.
The researchers had planned to resume their hard work Saturday after working intermittently the day before due to a torrential rain on Paradise, California. Some are now looking through neighborhoods destroyed for the second time while hundreds of people are still missing. They search for fragments, bones, or anything that looks like a pile of cremated ashes.
The research teams were wearing yellow rain underwear and fall protection helmets on Friday looking for clues that could indicate that a person could not get out, such as a car in the entrance or a wheelchair ramp. . They were looking not only for bones, but all that could be a pile of ashes cremated. Craig Covey, who led a team from Orange County, Southern California, temporarily halted the 30-member team, as heavy rain and wind toppled trees and created unsafe conditions.
The country's deadliest fire in the last century has left at least 84 dead and 475 people 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 rain complicated the search, but it also helped to quell the fire, said Josh Bischof, chief operating officer of 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.
While the rain made everyone colder and wetter, they kept the mission in mind, said Chris Stevens, who wore five layers of clothing to keep warm.
"It does not change the morale of the guys who work," he said. "Everyone here is very committed to helping people here."
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 Friday afternoon that about a quarter of an inch of rain was falling on time, which is not enough to cause serious problems. An inch of rain per hour would be harder, he said.
The rain should subside at midnight, followed by light showers on Saturday, he said.
In southern California, more and more residents were allowed to return to the evacuated areas because of the Woolsey Fire fire of 151 km2 (391 km2) while the teams were working on the repair of electric utilities , telephone and gas.
Nearly 1,100 residents were still under evacuation in Malibu and the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County, compared with 250,000 at the height of the fire.
On November 8th, the fire was declared just west of Los Angeles under the strong winds. Suburban communities and natural parks have been burned to the ocean, leaving vast expanses of blackened earth and numerous homes. Three people were found dead and 1,643 structures, most of them houses, were destroyed, officials said.
In northern California, field workers have tried to keep their minds focused on the task at hand rather than the tragedy of the situation.
"Guys will never say it's hard," said David Kang, a member of the Orange County Research Team. "But he is."
Journalists Olga Rodriguez and Daisy Nguyen (San Francisco) and John Antczak (Los Angeles), associated with the press, also contributed.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.
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