The Woolsey fire has scorched 96,314 acres in Los Angeles and Ventura counties and was 35% contained as of Tuesday morning, according to California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection officials. 

The boost in containment overnight comes as firefighters prepare for the second consecutive day of Santa Ana winds. 

Northeast winds are expected to blow 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 55 mph in Los Angeles, according to the National Weather Service. 

The Camp fire has scorched 125,000 aces in Butte County and was 30% contained as of Tuesday morning, according to California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection officials. 

Milder winds on Monday allowed firefighters to hold established containment lines and advance against the blaze, according to fire officials.

The inferno has ravaged the region since Thursday, killing at least 42 people and destroying more than 6,500 homes. The blaze is now the deadliest and most destructive fire in California history.

Anthropologists from Cal State Chico and the University of Nevada, Reno with expertise in identifying human remains were helping in the grim search effort into mass casualties in Paradise, where at least 42 have died in California’s worst fire.

In addition, the Butte County Sheriff’s Department has requested 150 additional search and recovery workers, two military mobile morgues and a rapid DNA identification system.

One search crew checking addresses of people reported missing found a body on the front steps of a burned-out trailer in the Ridgewood Mobile Home Park. Team members spent the rest of the day picking their way through debris, turning over metal frames and shattered furniture.

Mandatory evacuations in connection with the Woolsey fire have been lifted in Bell Canyon, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday morning.

There are extensive power outages in the area, and officials are asking residents to use caution when returning to their residences.

For updates on other mandatory evacuations, visit www.vcemergency.com.
 

Classes at UC Davis and Sacramento State University were canceled Tuesday because of poor air quality caused by the Camp fire, which has burned 117,000 acres in Butte County. 

UC Davis officials wrote on Twitter that the campus will remain open, but classes will not be in session. Sacramento State’s campus will be closed. 

The Camp fire, which has killed 42 people, is the deadliest fire in California history.

With three hoses, a few bandanas, a bottle of eye drops, and pure grit, Ali Zadeh single-handedly defended his wood-paneled home near Malibu from the Woolsey fire.

From about 7:30 Friday morning through that afternoon, Zadeh, 70, limped around his property, triaging the encroaching spot fires in a fight for his life.

He soaked the garage. He sprayed the bushes 20, sometimes 30 times. He used the hoses to drench the grove of eggplants, the barn and the shed that had hundreds of thousands of dollars in power tools. He sprayed down the rows of pine and oak trees in his corner of paradise, the fruits of a career as an engineer with Los Angeles County's public works department.

Even as the Woolsey fire continues to burn, residents in evacuated areas are starting to worry about looters.

A resident at the Malibu Bay Club said he saw a man Sunday morning on a dirt bike with a backpack driving through the Ventura County complex where about 20 condos sustained fire or water damage. A man matching that description was also seen driving south on Trancas Canyon Road that afternoon.

Bud Robison, property manager at Malibu Bay Club, saw three men on dual sport motorcycles wearing bandannas who were trespassing on the property Sunday afternoon. There were no license plates on the bikes. He said he asked the men for identification and they ignored him.

The death toll from the Camp fire in Paradise jumped to 42 on Monday, making it the deadliest fire in California history. Officials said they recovered the remains of 13 additional victims Monday as teams continued search the burned-out ruins of thousands of homes. Scores remain missing.

Read more here.

The Golden State got some moral support tonight from the Big Apple.

The operators of the Empire State Building illuminated the iconic skyscraper in the colors of California, blue and gold, to show support for the state during the wildfire losses.

The top spire of the tower was lit to resemble an EMS siren.