Wildfires trigger evacuations in California, Oregon, Idaho and Canada amid heat



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The extreme heat wave hitting the western United States and Canada is causing forest fires in several US states and in British Columbia.

Driving the news: Evacuation orders have been issued in California, Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia. In Arizona, two firefighters died when their plane crashed while responding to a forest fire in Mohave County, according to a statement from the Bureau of Land Management.

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  • The Bootleg fire in Oregon threatened the transmission lines that supply California with electricity after doubling in size to 120 square miles on Saturday.
  • A massive wildfire in northern California’s Plumas National Forest, known as the Beckwourth Complex, “generated its own lightning strike,” reports the Los Angeles Times.

Evacuation orders: The Beckwourth Complex fire, the combination of two fires, resulted in the evacuation of 2,800 people and the closure of the forest as it burned on some 55,000 acres in total, per AP.

  • The wildfire in southern Oregon triggered mandatory evacuations as it threatened some 3,000 homes, notes CBS News.
  • A bushfire in southern California’s San Diego County prompted the evacuation of two Native American reservations on Saturday, AP reports.
  • There have also been evacuations in the small, isolated community of Dixie in north-central Idaho, according to AP.
  • In Canada, a new forest fire near Vernon, British Columbia, triggered evacuations on Saturday as it burned down on some 25 acres of land, according to local media outlet Castanet.

To note : California Governor Gavin Newsom on Saturday relied on his emergency proclamation made a day earlier to release additional energy capacity.

  • Idaho Gov. Brad Little (R) issued a wildfire emergency declaration on Friday that mobilized firefighters and National Guard planes to assist with firefighting efforts.

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

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