Anguish and fear grip the West Coast as ash darkens a broad swath of the region. Exhausted fire crews worked on Sunday to beat back raging wildfires that have scorched millions of acres across three Western states and displaced thousands of people, with entire communities swallowed by flames. At least 24 people have died in the fires, and in Oregon, which has taken the biggest blow in the last few days, officials have warned that the toll could climb. “It is apocalyptic,” Senator Jeff Merkley, Democrat of Oregon, said Sunday on the ABC program “This Week.” “I drove 600 miles up and down the state, and I never escaped the smoke. We have thousands of people who have lost their homes.

Source: New York Times September 13, 2020 13:26 UTC