US braces for more wildfire deaths as thousands flee homes
- At least 16 dead as more than 40,000 flee their homes in Oregon
- A prediction of cooler weather offers some hope of respite in coming days, but officials warn of potential ‘mass’ fatalities
A prediction of cooler weather offered some hope of respite in coming days, but the true scale of the destruction from dozens of massive blazes in California, Oregon and Washington states remained hard to gauge.
There were 16 deaths confirmed this week, with wide stretches of land still cut off by flames.
“We’re preparing for a mass fatality incident based on what we know and the number of structures that have been lost,” warned Andrew Phelps, director of the office of emergency management in Oregon on Friday.
Oregon defines “mass fatality incident” as one that causes death and suffering which cannot be met by usual individual or community resources, according to The Washington Post.
“We anticipate that number (of deaths) may potentially go up as we get back into areas that have been ravaged by flame and obviously, smoke begins to clear,” warned California governor Gavin Newsom, as he visited a scorched forest near the raging North Complex Fire.