Wildfire in northern California has led to at least 5 deaths, officials confirm

Flames from a wildfire in Los Angeles, California.
(Image credit: ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

At least five people have been killed in the Camp Fire rapidly spreading through northern California, Butte County officials confirmed to The Washington Post on Friday.

As residents of Paradise, California, attempted to flee the wildfire, several were overcome by flames while in their vehicles. Other fatalities have not been confirmed because "the fire is still active," officials said. The Camp Fire, one of three fires burning through the state, quadrupled in size overnight and wiped out all of Paradise, a 27,000-person town. The town was evacuated, though several residents reported there was very little time before the blaze overtook the area, and many abandoned their vehicles as traffic blocked the road out of town. Even without traffic, flames surrounding roads made for treacherous evacuations.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Summer Meza, The Week US

Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.