California fires: Death toll mounts to 33 dead

The death toll in the devastating Northern California wildfire has mounted to 33.

As per CNN, a fire chief said reinforcements from other regions are helping firefighters contain the wildfires, though strong winds expected over the weekend could challenge those gains.

The officials are encountering bodies burnt beyond recognition -- as they search blackened ruins.

"Some of them are merely ashes and bones. And we may never get truly confirmative identification on ashes. When you're cremated, you can't get an ID," Sonoma County Sheriff Rob Giordano said at a news conference.

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, while confirming the death tool said termed the outbreak as one of the deadliest in state history.

Wildfires raging across broad swaths of northern California have hospitalised hundreds, and charred about 170,000 acres of land, damaged or destroyed at least 3,500 structures and forced nearly 20,000 residents to evacuate, local media reports said.

According to the National Interagency Fire Center, more than 2,700 firefighters and support personnel are battling the fires.

The wildfire, driven by powerful winds, tore through Northern California on Monday, forcing evacuations and destroying structures in their path.

The Trump administration has also approved a federal disaster declaration for California in response to wildfires.

The House of Representatives on Thursday announced a USD 36.5 billion disaster aid package to help victims struggling to recover from a string of devastating hurricanes and wildfires.

Earlier, California Governor Jerry Brown had requested federal assistance to combat the deadly fires and had also declared an emergency in eight counties, including Napa and Sonoma. 

-ANI