By Ovunc Kutlu
ANKARA (AA) – Wildfires continue to blaze California in the US as the state has doubled its previous record for the most areas burned so far this year.
"Since the beginning of the year, there have been over 8,200 wildfires that have burned well over 4 million acres in California," California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, also known as Cal Fire, said in a statement on Sunday.
While that area is larger than the state of Connecticut, it is also more than double the previous record of 1.67 million acres burned in 2018 fire season, according to Cal Fire.
Since the beginning of 2020, "the total number of fatalities statewide is 31 and over 8,454 structures have been destroyed," it said in the statement.
In California, more than 16,500 firefighters continue to work around the clock to contain 23 major wildfires across the state, while they responded to 27 new wildfires on Saturday to bring all to full containment, according to Cal Fire.
Governor Gavin Newsom visited some parts of northern California on Saturday to assess the damage from wildfires.
"Heartbreaking to see the devastation that this fire has caused," he wrote on Twitter last Thursday.
