The raging Dixie Fire in Northern us-regions – the third largest disasters in state history — has left at least eight area residents unaccounted for, according to a local sheriff.
Five of the missing people were from Greenville, two from Crescent Mills and one from Chester, the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office told FOX 40 of Sacramento.
Investigators were previously able to locate 16 other people who had been missing-persons” target=”_blank”>reported missing<
Many Greenville-area evacuees were gathered at a makeshift camp at Lassen Community College in Susanville, California, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported.
“There were embers and flames everywhere by the time we left,” Greenville resident Jennifer Gonzales told the newspaper.
Operations Chief Jay Walter moves a light post that was blocking Highway 89 as the Dixie Fire tears through the Greenville community in Plumas County, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021. (Associated Press)
The college camp sheltered about 140 people Wednesday night, with about 35 others staying at a nearby high school, the report said.
CALIFORNIA WILDFIRE SMOKE CAN BE SEEN FROM SPACE: WATCH THE VIDEO
Fire crews overnight continued to battle the Dixie Fire, which was present in four counties and grew by more than 100,000 acres between Thursday and Friday, according to FOX 40.
More than 5,000 fire personnel have been deployed to combat the blaze, the station reported.
The fire started July 13 and as of Friday morning it had burned nearly 434,000 acres spread across Plumas, Butte, Tehama and Lassen counties.
CLCIK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The fire tore through Greenville on Wednesday evening, destroying the downtown area and reducing to ashes most of the rest of the Gold Rush-era city of 1,000 residents.
Greenville is about 125 miles northwest of Reno, Nevada.