California’s largest wildfire explodes in size as fires rage across US west

Flames leap above fire vehicles (Noah Berger/AP)

California’s largest active fire has exploded in size, growing rapidly amid bone-dry fuel and threatening thousands of homes as firefighters scrambled to meet the danger.

The Park Fire’s intensity and dramatic spread led fire officials to make unwelcome comparisons to the monstrous Camp Fire, which burned out of control in nearby Paradise in 2018, killing 85 people and torching 11,000 homes.