California's Mendocino Complex fires explode to cover 230,000 acres


Another person was killed by California's massive Carr Fire Saturday, officials reported, bringing the death toll to seven. The most recent victim was a power company lineman whose identity has not been made public. The wildfire has burned more than 155,000 acres in a two-week span, displacing 35,000 people and destroying more than 1,500 buildings.
Meanwhile, the Mendocino Complex, a pair of fires about 150 miles south of the Carr Fire's Redding-area burn zone, exploded to cover 230,000 acres by Sunday morning.
The Mendocino Complex fires are now the sixth-largest wildfire in recorded California history, but, so far, have destroyed far fewer buildings than the Carr Fire.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.
-
Labubu: the 'creepy' dolls sparking brawls in the shops
In the Spotlight Craze for the pint-sized soft toys has reached fever pitch among devotees
-
The top period dramas to stream now
The Week Recommends Heaving bosoms and billowing shirts are standard fare in these historical TV classics
-
Women need more pain management during gynecological procedures
Under the radar Pain should no longer be ignored
-
EPA is reportedly killing Energy Star program
speed read The program for energy-efficient home appliances has saved consumers billions in energy costs since its 1992 launch
-
US proposes eroding species protections
Speed Read The Trump administration wants to change the definition of 'harm' in the Environmental Protection Act to allow habitat damage
-
Severe storms kill dozens across central US
Speed Read At least 40 people were killed over the weekend by tornadoes, wildfires and dust storms
-
Rain helps Los Angeles wildfires, risks mudslides
Speed Read The weather provided relief for crews working to contain wildfires, though rain over a burn area ups the chances of flooding and mudslides
-
Should Los Angeles rebuild its fire-prone neighbourhoods?
Talking Point The latest devastating wildfires must be a wake-up call for Los Angels to 'move away from fire-prone suburban sprawl'
-
The worst wildfires in California history
The Explainer Total damage from the ongoing fires could be up to $150 billion, according to AccuWeather
-
What happens to wildlife during a wildfire?
The explainer Flames also affect the flora and fauna
-
Death toll rises in LA fires as wind lull allows progress
Speed Read At least 24 people have died and 100,000 people are under mandatory evacuation orders