Firefighters Flanked by Flames as Dixie Fire Balloons in Size

Firefighters deployed to the Dixie Fire in Northern California were flanked by burning trees along Highway 89 on August 8, as the blaze grew to more than 463,000 acres, becoming the largest single-source wildfire in the history of the state. Footage from Daniel Ramey, a firefighter and spokesperson for the Peardale Chicago Park Fire District in California’s Nevada County, shows fiery, near-apocalyptic scenes as he and fellow firefighters drove along the highway through the blaze. By Monday morning, the fire had grown to 489,287 acres (about 765 square miles) and was 21 percent contained, Cal Fire said. Multiple evacuation orders were in place across Butte, Lassen, Plumas, and Tehama counties. More than 430 structures had been destroyed, and more than 16,000 other structures were at risk, officials said. The US Forest Service on Sunday warned 10 local communities that their air quality would be unhealthy and hazardous over Sunday and Monday due to smoke from the fire. Credit: Peardale Chicago Park Fire via Storyful