California town decimated by 2018 wildfire threatened again by state’s largest this year

By Emma Tucker, CNN

(CNN) — As the Park Fire continues to rapidly grow and threaten thousands more acres of northern California, an evacuation warning has been issued for the town of Paradise, a place where people know the horrors of a raging wildfire all too well.

In 2018, the deadliest wildfire in state history, the Camp Fire, incinerated much of the town. Three years later, the Dixie Fire burned nearby. And now, residents of Paradise say the smell of smoke is already enough to traumatize them anew.

Paradise Mayor Ron Lassonde was visibly emotional as he told CNN affiliate KCRA it was “hard to talk about” the Park Fire as it brought back memories of 2018.

“Every once in a while, we smell smoke or see smoke like that, it does trigger us. It triggers the people here in Paradise. When you go through trauma, that’s what happens,” Lassonde told KCRA.

Ava Elsner, who lived through the fire six years ago, told CNN she fears for her neighbors as the Park Fire – now the seventh-largest wildfire in California history – burns nearby.

“I don’t want anyone else to experience this. It’s the most traumatizing, terrifying, and saddening thing to have a whole community go up in flames, and to lose all your personal items … so to see my parents go through this is just really hard,” Elsner told CNN. “I want to stay strong for them and comfort them the way that they did for me. And it’s just, it’s just difficult.”

Meanwhile, wildfires are burning across the mountain west, in the US and north of the border in Canada, as firefighters deal with strong winds, low humidity and high temperatures to try to get the blazes under control.

There were 103 large wildfires burning across the US as of Sunday morning, including 36 in Oregon and 15 in California, according to the Interagency Fire Center, and hundreds in Canada reported by its Fire Center. Here’s a brief rundown of some of the largest fires:

• Park Fire – Butte, Tehama, Plumas and Shasta counties, California: The Park Fire has become California’s largest wildfire this year, covering more than 360,000 acres, or 562 square miles – larger than the city of Phoenix – and it’s still spreading. The fire was 12% contained as of Sunday afternoon, according to CalFire. President Joe Biden has directed his administration to do everything possible to support ongoing fire suppression efforts, according to a White House official. The fire began Wednesday in the Chico area, forcing thousands of people to evacuate. CalFire said Saturday a preliminary air assessment showed over 100 structures impacted by the fire, and officials on the ground confirmed 20 structures have been destroyed.

• Durkee Fire – Baker and Malheur counties in Oregon: The largest active wildfire in Oregon is the Durkee Fire, which has burned more than 288,000 acres. It started July 17 near the Oregon-Idaho state line. Amid high temperatures, extremely dry vegetation and strong winds, the fire was 49% contained as of Sunday evening, according to Oregon Wildfire Response and Recovery.

• Jasper National Park Fire – Jasper, Alberta: Large sections of the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies are being consumed by “a wall of flames.” As of Sunday afternoon, the fire was at just under 80,000 acres, according to park officials, making it the largest wildfire in more than 100 years in Jasper National Park. Thousands of visitors and residents fled as flames devastated nearly 40% of the town’s structures. There are currently 135 wildfires burning in the forest protection area of the province, 34 of which are out of control, authorities said Sunday afternoon. The fire is expected to become more active over the coming days with warmer weather ahead, Parks Canada said.

Firefighting pilot found dead while battling wildfire

A firefighting pilot was found dead in a single-engine air tanker on Friday after going missing the night before while working in the vicinity of the 221-square-mile Falls Fire burning in the Malheur National Forest, among several large wildfires burning across Oregon, according to officials.

Meanwhile, the lightning-sparked Durkee Fire is the largest of the wildfires currently burning across Oregon, which has been the hardest hit by fires in recent days.

Three people were injured and four homes and 19 other structures were destroyed as the fire spread, according to the Oregon Department of Emergency Management.

Evacuation recommendations in Malheur County have been lifted as of Thursday afternoon. In Baker County many areas’ evacuation levels were reduced or eliminated, according to the county’s Sheriff’s Office.

Fire moves across Canada’s Jasper National Park

In Alberta, two wildfires converged in the Jasper National Park area, forming what authorities are referring to as the Jasper Wildfire Complex. Officials say the losses are significant, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has deployed federal support to help battle the blaze.

“Homes and businesses have been lost to a wildfire that people are calling a ‘wall of flames,’” Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said.

In Jasper, a popular tourist town in Alberta, 25,000 residents and visitors were forced to evacuate from a fast-moving blaze, which has damaged nearly 40% of the town’s structures, officials said.

“The pain our town is feeling is beyond comprehension. Our homes were full of memories and hubs for family, friendship and community,” Jasper Mayor Richard Ireland said in a statement Saturday. “We have rallied many times in the past to support each other. I know this will be the darkest week in our community’s history. I am confident that together we will see brighter days are ahead.”

It remains difficult to measure exactly how big the complex – which also includes a third nearby fire – is due to extreme fire behavior and thick smoke cover.

“We will recover from this,” Smith said while holding back tears. “To those in Alberta and around the world who have experienced the magic of Jasper, the magic is not lost, and it never will be.”

The owner of Maligne Lodge in Jasper told CNN news partner CTV News she was shocked when she saw a photo of the 98-room hotel up in flames. It had been in the family since 1961 after her father purchased the property, and she had been working there since she was a child.

“As soon as we’re given the go-ahead, we’ll be in there rebuilding our hotel,” Karyn Decore said.

“Significant amounts of rain” over three days has helped firefighters get a handle on many of the Alberta wildfires, Melissa Story, a provincial wildfire information officer with Alberta Wildfire, said during a news conference Sunday.

But crews are preparing for warmer weather in the days ahead, which is expected to intensify the fires, especially in the southern areas of the province where rain was scarce.

Fires keep Paradise residents on edge

Nearly 4,000 firefighters are “on the front lines, battling the blaze” of the Park Fire, according to Cal Fire.

The Park Fire is burning just three weeks after the Thompson Fire in Butte County burned more than 3,700 acres, forced people from their homes, and destroyed more than two dozen structures, including houses.

“Yes, there’s a fire back there,” Paradise Mayor Lassonde told CNN affiliate KCRA, appearing to be distressed. “Yes, people’s houses are being destroyed. Yes, we’ve got over 1,000 firefighters out there, risking their lives, to keep us safe.”

One Butte County evacuee, Tim Ferguson, said he lost his father in the Camp Fire, and it’s painful thinking about having to go through the experience again, according to an interview with CNN affiliate KOVR.

“We’ve got our home, and we’ve been working on it a lot lately, fixing it up, and it’s just we’re at the verge of maybe losing all that,” Ferguson said.

A heavy plume of smoke once again looms over the county as crews battle thick flames torching everything in their path. The Park Fire has left graveyards of burned cars and charred, hallowed out structures, video from the Chico and Cohasset areas of Butte County shows.

A 42-year-old man identified by authorities as Ronnie Dean Stout II has been arrested on suspicion of pushing a burning car 60 feet into a gully, “spreading flames” that caused the Park Fire. Stout will likely face an arson charge, though it’s unclear what count or whether enhancements will be added, Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said Thursday.

The DA’s office told CNN Stout has not retained an attorney and will be assigned a public defender at his arraignment.

Cal Fire initially estimated the fire had destroyed more than 100 structures, but on Saturday said crews on the ground have so far confirmed 20 structures destroyed.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for both counties Friday. The state also secured a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to ensure there are enough resources to fight the fire.

Elsner said the Park Fire has forced her and her parents to take shelter at the same location they stayed at in 2018. She told CNN, in tears, the experience is causing her significant PTSD from the Camp Fire and flashbacks triggered by the flames and “charred bits of remnants.”

Elsner’s mother, Mary Graeff, said it’s been challenging comforting her daughter through this. “It was just hard, you know, to be that age and then lose absolutely everything. So that was hard. And watching your child go through that was awful,” Graeff said through tears.

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CNN’s Dalia Faheid, Taylor Ward, Raja Razek, Nouran Salahieh, Robert Shackelford, Lauren Mascarenhas, Paradise Afshar, Taylor Romine and Kara Mihm, Cindy Von Quednow contributed to this report.