Thousands evacuate as Northern California wildfire spreads, with more hot weather expected

OROVILLE, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters lined roads to keep flames from reaching homes as helicopters dropped water on a growing wildfire Wednesday in Northern California that has forced at least 26,000 people to evacuate, as the state sweltered under extreme heat.

The Thompson fire broke out before noon Tuesday about 70 miles (110 kilometers) north of Sacramento, near the city of Oroville in Butte County. It sent up a huge plume of smoke that could be seen from space as it grew to more than 5.5 square miles (14 square kilometers). There was no containment.

But Oroville Mayor David Pittman said by Wednesday afternoon there had been a “significant drop in the fire activity,” and he was hopeful that some residents could soon be allowed to return home. The fire's progress was stopped along the southern edge and firefighters working in steep terrain were trying to build containment lines on the northern side.

“On that north side they have some real struggles in terms of the topography,” Pittman said.

More than a dozen other blazes, most of them small, were active in across the state, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire. A new fire Wednesday afternoon prompted a small number of evacuations in heavily populated Simi Valley, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) northwest of downtown Los Angeles.

The state's largest blaze, the Basin Fire, covered nearly 22 square miles (57 square kilometers) of the Sierra National Forest in eastern Fresno County and was 26% contained.

In Oroville, a state of emergency was declared Tuesday night and evacuation centers were set up. The evacuation zone expanded Wednesday into foothills and rural areas beyond the city that’s home to about 20,000 people. With July Fourth in mind, authorities also warned that fireworks are banned in many places, including most of Butte County.

There was no immediate official report on property losses. An Associated Press photographer saw fire burn three adjacent suburban-style homes in Oroville.

The fire ignited sprigs of grass poking from the concrete edges of Lake Oroville as gusty winds whipped up American flags lining a bend of the state’s second largest reservoir and the nation’s tallest dam.

Residents stood on hillsides in the night, watching the orange glow, as aircraft made water drops to keep the fire from spreading. A crew of more than a dozen firefighters saved one home as goats and other farm animals ran to find safety.

The fire's cause is being investigated. Red flag warnings for critical fire weather conditions, including gusty northerly winds and low humidity levels, were in effect when it erupted.

The warnings were expected to remain in effect until 8 p.m. Wednesday, said Garrett Sjolund, the Butte County unit chief for Cal Fire.

“The conditions out there that are in our county this summer are much different than we’ve experienced the last two summers,” Sjolund said in an online briefing. “The fuels are very dense, brush is dry. And as you can see, any wind will, move a fire out very quickly.”

The conditions led Pacific Gas & Electric to implement targeted public safety power shutoffs in parts of some Northern California counties to prevent fires from being ignited by downed or damaged wires.

More high temperatures above 100 degrees (37.8 Celsius) were forecast Wednesday, the National Weather Service said. Hot conditions were expected to continue into next week.

Authorities warned of full legal consequences for any illegal use of fireworks during the Fourth of July holiday.

“Don’t be an idiot, cause a fire and create more problems for us,” said Butte County Sheriff Kory L. Honea. ”No one in the community is going to want that. And we certainly don’t want this."

The governor’s office announced late Tuesday that federal funding had been approved to help with firefighting efforts. Gov. Gavin Newsom this week activated the State Operations Center to coordinate California’s response, dispatch mutual aid and support communities as they respond to threats of wildfire and excessive heat.

In Southern California, Joshua Tree National Park officials closed Covington Flats, an area with most of the park's important Joshua tree populations, on Wednesday because of extreme fire risk after spring rains led to abundant grass that has now dried. A June 2023 fire burned 1.6 square miles (4.14 square kilometers) of Joshua trees and desert tortoise habitat.

This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Garrett Sjolund's first name. It is Garrett, not Garret.

Antczak reported from Los Angeles.

A boat crosses Lake Oroville with a smoldering hillside behind as the Thompson Fire burns in Oroville, Calif., on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A boat crosses Lake Oroville with a smoldering hillside behind as the Thompson Fire burns in Oroville, Calif., on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Firefighters battle the Thompson Fire burning in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A firefighter runs while battling the Thompson Fire burning in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A home is seen engulfed in flames during the Thompson Fire in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Flames are seen on a ridge at the Potters Ravine Recreation Area near Lake Oroville during the Thompson Fire in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Rocco Olhiser, a firefighter with the Colusa Fire Department, carries a hose while battling the Thompson fire in Oroville, Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Rocco Olhiser, a firefighter with the Colusa Fire Department, center, douses water on a burning tree while battling the Thompson fire in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

A night flying helicopter drops water on flames as the Thompson Fire burns, Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

A helicopter flies over the Thompson Fire as it burns above Lake Oroville in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Flames consume a garage as the Thompson Fire burns in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — The highest camp on the world’s tallest mountain is littered with garbage that is going to take years to clean up, according to a Sherpa who led a team that worked to clear trash and dig up dead bodies frozen for years near Mount Everest’s peak.

The Nepal government-funded team of soldiers and Sherpas removed 11 tons (24,000 pounds) of garbage, four dead bodies and a skeleton from Everest during this year's climbing season.

Ang Babu Sherpa, who led the team of Sherpas, said there could be as much as 40-50 tons (88,000-110,000 pounds) of garbage still at South Col, the last camp before climbers make their attempt on the summit.

“The garbage left there was mostly old tents, some food packaging and gas cartridges, oxygen bottles, tent packs, and ropes used for climbing and tying up tents,” he said, adding that the garbage is in layers and frozen at the 8,000-meter (26,400-foot) altitude where the South Col camp is located.

Since the peak was first conquered in 1953, thousands of climbers have scaled it and many have left behind more than just their footprints.

In recent years, a government requirement that climbers bring back their garbage or lose their deposits, along with increased awareness among climbers about the environment, have significantly reduced the amount of garbage left behind. However, that was not the case in earlier decades.

“Most of the garbage is from older expeditions,” Ang Babu said.

The Sherpas on the team collected garbage and bodies from the higher-attitude areas, while the soldiers worked at lower levels and the base camp area for weeks during the popular spring climbing season, when weather conditions are more favorable.

Ang Babu said the weather was a big challenge for their work in the South Col area, where oxygen levels are about one-third the normal amount, winds can quickly turn to blizzard conditions and temperatures plunge.

“We had to wait for good weather when the sun would melt the ice cover. But waiting a long time in that attitude and conditions is just not possible,” he said. “It's difficult to stay for long with the oxygen level very low.”

Digging out the garbage is also a big task, since it is frozen inside ice and breaking the blocks is not easy.

It took two days to dig out one body near the South Col which was frozen in a standing position deep in the ice, he said. Part way through, the team had to retreat to lower camps because of the deteriorating weather, and then resume after it improved.

Another body was much higher up at 8,400 meters (27,720 feet) and it took 18 hours to drag it to Camp 2, where a helicopter picked it up.

The bodies were flown to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu for identification.

Of the 11 tons of garbage removed, three tons of decomposable items were taken to villages near Everest's base and the remaining eight were carried by porters and yaks and then taken by trucks to Kathmandu. There it was sorted for recycling at a facility operated by Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste.

“The oldest waste we received was from 1957, and that was rechargeable batteries for torch lights,” said Sushil Khadga of the agency.

Why do climbers leave garbage behind?

"At that high altitude, life is very difficult and oxygen is very low. So climbers and their helpers are more focused on saving themselves," Khadga said.

Sushil Khadga of the Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste, checks an used oxygen cylinder collected en route Mount Everest before it is recycled at the facility, in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, June 24, 2024. The highest camp on the world's tallest mountain is littered with garbage that is going to take years to clean up, according to a Sherpa who led a team that worked to clear trash and dig up dead bodies frozen for years near Mount Everest's peak. (AP Photo/Sanjog Manandhar)

Shoes and other garbage collected en route Mount Everest is piled before it is sorted for recycling at a facility operated by Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste, in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, June 24, 2024. The highest camp on the world's tallest mountain is littered with garbage that is going to take years to clean up, according to a Sherpa who led a team that worked to clear trash and dig up dead bodies frozen for years near Mount Everest's peak. (AP Photo/Sanjog Manandhar)

This image provided by the Peak Promotion shows the body of a climber that had been frozen for years before it was removed from the Everest region, Nepal, Monday, May 13, 2024. In the seven decades since Mount Everest was first conquered, thousands of climbers have scaled the peak, and many have left behind more than just their footprints. Tons of trash and several bodies remain on the icy slopes of the world's highest mountain. (Peak Promotion via AP)

Workers segregate the garbage collected en route Mount Everest, at a facility operated by Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste, in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, June 24, 2024. The Nepal government-funded team of soldiers and Sherpas removed 11 tons (24,000 pounds) of garbage, four dead bodies and a skeleton from Everest during this year's climbing season. (AP Photo/Sanjog Manandhar)

Ang Babu Sherpa, who led the team of Sherpas cleaning the trash from the high altitude camps of Mount Everest speaks to the Associated Press in Kathmandu, Nepal, Thursday, June 20, 2024. Ang Babu said the weather was a big challenge for their work in the South Col area, where oxygen levels are about one-third the normal amount, winds can quickly turn to blizzard conditions and temperatures plunge. (AP Photo/Sanjog Manandhar)

Sacks of garbage collected en route Mount Everest are piled before recycling at a facility operated by Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste, in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, June 24, 2024. The highest camp on the world's tallest mountain is littered with garbage that is going to take years to clean up, according to a Sherpa who led a team that worked to clear trash and dig up dead bodies frozen for years near Mount Everest's peak. (AP Photo/Sanjog Manandhar)

This image provided by the Peak Promotion shows a member of the Nepal government-funded team using a spade to remove frozen trash en route the Mount Everest, Nepal, Tuesday, April 27, 2021. In the seven decades since Mount Everest was first conquered, thousands of climbers have scaled the peak, and many have left behind more than just their footprints. Tons of trash and several bodies remain on the icy slopes of the world's highest mountain. (Peak Promotion via AP)

Used oxygen cylinders and beer cans collected en route Mount Everest lie at a facility operated by Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste, in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, June 24, 2024. The highest camp on the world's tallest mountain is littered with garbage that is going to take years to clean up, according to a Sherpa who led a team that worked to clear trash and dig up dead bodies frozen for years near Mount Everest's peak. (AP Photo/Sanjog Manandhar)

This image provided by the Peak Promotion shows recovered bodies of climbers being prepared to be airlifted from Everest base camp in Nepal, Wednesday, May 29, 2024. The Nepal government-funded team of soldiers and Sherpas removed 11 tons (24,000 pounds) of garbage, four dead bodies and a skeleton from Everest during this year's climbing season. (Peak Promotion via AP)

Garbage collected en route Mount Everest is piled before it is sorted for recycling at a facility operated by Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste, in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, June 24, 2024. The highest camp on the world's tallest mountain is littered with garbage that is going to take years to clean up, according to a Sherpa who led a team that worked to clear trash and dig up dead bodies frozen for years near Mount Everest's peak. (AP Photo/Sanjog Manandhar)