MALIBU, CA - NOVEMBER 11: Firefighters battle a blaze at the Salvation Army Camp on November 10, 2018 in Malibu, California. The Woolsey fire has burned over 70,000 acres and has reached the Pacific Coast at Malibu as it continues grow. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)
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* 44 dead in California fires as the Camp Fire becomes the deadliest in state history
CNN – An additional 13 sets of human remains were discovered Monday in Northern California, bringing the death toll from the Camp Fire to 42, making it the deadliest wildfire in the state’s history, the sheriff of Butte County said.
The increased death toll comes as first responders battle blazes on both ends of the state, and brings the statewide death toll to 44.
Fierce winds continue to threaten lives and homes in Southern California’s Woolsey Fire, which has killed two people so far. The strongest Santa Ana winds in the south may bring gusts near hurricane force on Tuesday, CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen said.
MALIBU, CA – NOVEMBER 11: Firefighters battle a blaze at the Salvation Army Camp on November 10, 2018 in Malibu, California. The Woolsey fire has burned over 70,000 acres and has reached the Pacific Coast at Malibu as it continues grow. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)An air tanker drops water on a fire along the Ronald Reagan (118) Freeway in Simi Valley, Calif., Monday, Nov. 12, 2018. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)A firefighter battles a fire along the Ronald Reagan (118) Freeway in Simi Valley, Calif., Monday, Nov. 12, 2018. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)Chris and Nancy Brown embrace while looking over the remains of their burned residence after the Camp fire tore through the region in Paradise, California on November 12, 2018. – Thousands of firefighters spent a fifth day digging battle lines to contain California’s worst ever wildfire as the wind-whipped flames cleaved a merciless path through the state’s northern hills, leaving death and devastation in their wake. The Camp Fire — in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains north of Sacramento — has killed 29 people, matching the state’s deadliest ever brush blaze 85 years ago. More than 200 people are still unaccounted for, according to officials. (Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP)JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty ImagesNov. 12, 2018; Thousand Oaks, CA, USA; Firefighters put out hotspots as the Hill Fire burned in a canyon on Monday, Nov. 12, 2108, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Ventura County firefighters saved all the homes in the area. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher/The Arizona Republic via USA TODAY NETWORK/Sipa USA
Meanwhile, firefighters made progress Monday in containing the Camp Fire, which razed the town of Paradise, where most of the dead have been found. Harrowing stories of escapes and close calls are trickling out of the region.
Resident Nichole Jolly said she thought her life was over as flames surrounded her car, filling it with smoke. Then, she called her husband, who urged her to run, she said.
“If you’re going to die, die fighting,” she said, tearfully recalling his words.
Outside the vehicle, ash and hot embers stung her eyes and obscured her vision, she said. She felt around until she reached a fire engine that was hot to the touch. Firefighters pulled her inside, but they, too, were trapped, she said — until a bulldozer came through and cleared a path to safety.
