California wildfire claims 9 lives, 35 others missing

At least nine victims have lost their lives and 35 others have been declared missing after wildfires burned out of control on Friday in a mountain town in California.

Rescue operatives say the bodies of the nine victims were found in and around the Northern California town of Paradise, where more than 6,700 homes and businesses were burned down by the Camp Fire.

Scores of residents have been forced to flee the upscale beach community of Malibu in the face of the monster fire storm.

Read also: Death toll rises to 7 as tropical storm Florence is predicted to batter eastern US states for days

“This event was the worst-case scenario. It was the event we have feared for a long time,” Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said at a Friday evening press conference. “Regrettably, not everybody made it out.”

The remains of five of the victims were discovered in or near burned out cars, three outside residences and one inside a home, Honea said.

Another 35 people had been reported missing and three firefighters had been injured.

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