A massive forest fire is spreading rapidly in California and thousands of homes are threatened.
The fire exploded in size during Friday evening. At that time, it was 967 square kilometers in size and spreading rapidly eastward and northward, according to AP.
There is an enormous amount of fuel out there and it will continue at this rapid pace, says incident commander Billy See from California's fire department.
So far, around 130 buildings have been destroyed and four counties have received evacuation orders: Butte, Plumas, Tehama, and Shasta.
The spread and intensity of the fire have led firefighters to compare it to the forest fire in the state in 2018, when 85 people died and 11,000 homes burned.
The state has secured federal emergency grants to ensure that there are sufficient resources to combat the fire, according to CNN.
The fire started on Wednesday when a man allegedly pushed a burning car down a ravine in Chico, according to authorities. The man then disappeared into the crowd but was arrested later on Thursday.
Carli Parker is one of hundreds who have fled their homes. She decided to leave her residence with her family when the fire started burning on the other side of the street. She has previously been forced to leave two homes due to fires.
I have little hope that my home will remain undamaged, she says to AP.
More than 110 active fires, covering 7,250 square kilometers, were burning in the USA on Friday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
The region is experiencing record heat with extremely dry conditions and increased lightning strikes due to climate change.
