California wildfires: Governor brands fires 'new normal'

[Brother Buzz]

California wildfires: Governor brands fires 'new normal'

Devastating wildfires fueled by climate change are "the new normal", California's governor has said.

Jerry Brown said vast fires, such as the ones that have ravaged southern California in recent days, "could happen every year or every few years".

"We're facing a new reality in this state," he said. Mr Brown made the comments after surveying the damage in Ventura County, north of Los Angeles.

Thousands of firefighters have been battling the fires since Monday.

Mr Brown, a Democrat who has attacked the Trump administration's stance on climate change, said: "We're facing a new reality in this state, where fires threaten people's lives, their properties, their neighbourhoods, and of course billions and billions of dollars.

"With climate change, some scientists are saying southern California is literally burning up."



http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42297370