Los Angeles, July 4 : Three major wildfires are currently raging in Northern California and have so far scorched more than 40,000 acres of land in the region.
The Lava Fire in Siskiyou County, which started on June 24, has burned nearly 24,460 acres with 24 per cent contained as of Saturday, Xinhua news agency quoted the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) as saying.
The blaze has also forced thousands of people to be displaced.
The Tennant Fire, which broke out on the eastern side of the Klamath National Forest on June 28, was around 10,012 acres and 17 per cent was contained as of Saturday, Cal Fire said.
According to the US Forest Service, the Salt Fire has destroyed about 27 homes.
The fire grew to 7,467 acre with only 5 per cent contained.
It is believed to have been started by a vehicle travelling on I-5 on June 30 near Lake Shasta, a report by San Francisco Chronicle said.
While wildfires are a natural part of California’s landscape, the fire season in the state and across the US West Coast is starting earlier and ending later each year.
Climate change is considered a key driver of this trend, Cal Fire said.
Warmer spring and summer temperatures, reduced snowpack, and earlier spring snowmelt create longer and more intense dry seasons that increase moisture stress on vegetation and make forests more susceptible to severe wildfire, it noted.(IANS)
