According to the latest assessment of the Californian firefighters, 2,586 houses, or 7,800 inhabitants, have already been evacuated due to the advance of a major fire which broke out just over 100 km east of Los Angeles, in the western United States, Saturday night.
This Sunday, the fire nicknamed "Apple Fire" by local firefighters has already devastated just over 6,000 ha of vegetation. 400 firefighters are mobilized against the wall of fire which advances inexorably because of strong winds on California. It is not currently contained at all, according to firefighters in the region.
A detached house and two outbuildings were destroyed by the fire, emergency services said. Evacuation centers have been set up at local hotels and at Beaumont High School, firefighter spokesman Rob Roseen told CNN.
The cause of the fire unknown
The Covid-19 epidemic also has consequences for the evacuation procedure. All evacuation centers must therefore apply health protocols such as temperature controls at the entrance, masks and social distancing, said the communications officer of the fire soldiers.
The cause of the fire, which started in heather, is still being investigated. As for the weather, little hope. High temperatures, very low humidity and offshore winds are not expected to help firefighters in their fight against the flames, according to the US National Weather Service. California is very often in the grip of spectacular fires, sometimes very deadly.