New satellite imagery taken Monday shows just how extensive the destruction in Greenville, California, is after the Dixie Fire swept through the town last week.
Nearly every business in the city’s commercial center appeared to have collapsed or been gutted, with flames still flickering in the debris, video recorded last week by storm chaser Brandon Clement showed.
Now that the smoke has cleared, satellite imagery taken Monday confirms that not much of the town is left intact.
“We have a deep responsibility to rebuild this community,” said California Gov. Gavin Newsom during a visit to the town on Saturday. “But also address the intensity of what is occurring globally, but manifesting in smash-mouth ways here in California – and that’s climate change.”
The devastation wrought by wildfires is likely to continue as the world continues to warm.
An extensive drought, made worse by climate change, is responsible for the dried vegetation in the region that has allowed these intense wildfires to grow at alarming rates.
Between August 4 and 5, the fire burned 44,000 acres. That’s equivalent to burning the entire city of Washington, DC, in less than 12 hours.
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Now the wildfire is approaching half a million acres burned with nearly 1,000 structures destroyed.
The wildfire is still burning and growing every day as weather conditions remain conducive for continued expansion.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire, reported Tuesday that the Dixie Fire had grown slightly to 487,764 acres – a roughly 5,000-acre increase from Monday evening – as containment of the blaze increased three percentage points to 25%.
Almost 900 structures, which include homes and commercial buildings along with smaller outbuildings and sheds, have been destroyed and more than 16,000 structures are still threatened by the fire.