Weather

California Firefighters Are Dealing With 10 Wildfires Across The State

The Sherpa fire started Wednesday and has burned more than 7,800 acres.

California Firefighters Are Dealing With 10 Wildfires Across The State
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
SMS

Firefighters are working to contain multiple wildfires in California, and a record-breaking heat wave isn't helping the situaiton.

The heat is making firefighting efforts more challenging and could be contributing to the Sherpa fire in Santa Barbara County. The fire started Wednesday and has burned more than 7,800 acres, but firefighters are making progress. Officials say it's now 54 percent contained.

Another fire that's burned 1,900 acres near the U.S.-Mexico border started Sunday and is just 5 percent contained. Officials blamed the fire's intensity on "triple digit temperatures and single digit humidity."

California says more than 3,000 firefighters are fighting 10 large wildfires across the state.

In addition to the fires, the Southern California heat is also being blamed for power outages because of increased strain on the power grid.

Extreme heat is also affecting other parts of the Southwest, including Arizona where four hikers died from heat-related emergencies this weekend.

This video includes images from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.