California's Wildfires Increasingly Contained, Firefighters Bracing For Return Of Dry Heat
CALISTOGA (CBS13/AP) - Containment of California's devastating wildfires continued to increase Monday but the weather was again turning hot and dry, and forecasts called for the kind of winds that historically have fanned conflagrations during fall.
More than 12,000 firefighters were working on 14 major fires or complexes of fires, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire.
"Progress across the board has been made, a testament to the extraordinary work of the men and women of Cal Fire and all the mutual aid that's coming over across the rest of the country," Gov. Gavin Newsom said during his Monday briefing.
Still, the governor cautioned that the state was not out the woods yet - especially considering how some of the most destructive and deadly wildfires, like the 2018 Camp Fire, in recent years happened later in the season.
"Please maintain your vigilance, please take very seriously those evacuation warnings, if indeed you are the recipient of one," Newsom said.
A half-dozen other large blazes had no significant growth or were exhibiting minimal fire behavior, Cal Fire said.
More than 8,400 wildfires this year have burned well over 4 million acres (6250 square miles (16187.4 square kilometers) in California, mostly since mid-August. There have been 31 fire-related fatalities and more than 9,200 structures have been destroyed.
Notably, the Glass Fire that ravaged the wine country of Napa and Sonoma counties was 95% contained. Farther north, the Zogg Fire in Shasta and Tehama counties was 99% contained. Four of the deaths occurred in that fire.
Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
