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USA: 60,000 people are fleeing forest fire near Los Angeles

2020-10-26T22:23:46.805Z


4,000 firefighters are currently fighting 22 forest fires in California. Tens of thousands have to leave their homes because of a new fire in Irvine near Los Angeles.


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Firefighters fight the flames in Irvine, California

Photo: 

ETIENNE LAURENT / EPA-EFE / Shutterstock

A new forest fire in the US state of California has forced around 60,000 people to flee.

According to the fire department, the so-called Silverado fire broke out on Monday morning near Irvine around 60 kilometers southeast of Los Angeles and spread quickly in strong winds and drought.

The flames destroyed 800 hectares of land within a few hours, and around 60,000 people had to leave their homes as a precaution.

500 emergency services are deployed in the danger zone, as the fire brigade announced.

They would fight the flames from the air and with extinguishing teams on the ground.

The cause of the fire was initially unknown.

This year, California is suffering from an especially dire forest fire season.

According to a count by the California fire department, more than 8,000 fires have raged on more than 1.5 million hectares of land in the most populous state in the United States.

More than 30 people were killed.

4000 firefighters against 22 forest fires

According to the California Fire Department, Cal Fire, more than 4,000 firefighters fought 22 forest fires on Monday.

In areas with 34 million inhabitants, the red alert is currently applied for high fire risk.

Scientists believe that climate change is partly responsible for the forest and bush fires in the western United States, which have been increasing for years.

As a result of global warming, the drought in the vegetation increases significantly, which in turn favors the rapid spread of the flames.

California Governor Gavin Newsom announced in September that new cars with internal combustion engines will no longer be allowed to be sold from 2035.

"This is the most powerful step our state can take in the fight against climate change," Newsom said.

"For too many decades we have allowed cars to pollute the air our children and family members breathe."

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hba / AFP / dpa

Source: spiegel

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