Thompson fire spreads in Northern California, thousands evacuated, several people stay

The Thompson Fire hit the city of Oroville this week.

Oroville is located about 20 miles south of Paradise, where 85 people died in the worst wildfire in California history and destroyed the town of Butte County.

As of Wednesday, more than 28,000 Butte County residents have received evacuation orders. The Thompson Fire spread to over 3,500 acres, and the suppression rate was 0%. According to Rick Carhart, a spokesperson for the Butte County Branch of the California Fire Department, four houses have collapsed and thousands of structures are under threat.

Workers fought against this blaze, which is one of several fires that occurred in the state this week, under intense heat and red flag warnings. Temperatures will reach 108 degrees on Wednesday, and gusts of 15 to 20 miles are forecast.

Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning, which is a warning against extreme fire weather. The combination of maximum wind speeds of 30 miles, low humidity, and high temperatures “could cause extreme fire behavior,” the National Weather Service said.

According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention, there were 8 new fires in the state on Tuesday and 9 new fires on Wednesday. The Thompson Fire is the biggest, followed by the San Benito County airline fire, which extinguished 1,200 acres, or 55%, on Wednesday morning.

Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in response to the Thompson fire on Wednesday.

The fire broke out before 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday and is currently being investigated, and the cause has not yet been determined.