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Death toll from flame-ravaged California reaches 71 as officials say 1,000 missing

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Death toll from flame-ravaged California reaches 71 as officials say 1,000 missing

Devil winds’ continue to wreak havoc in flame ravaged California with the death toll now rising up to 71 even as rescue officials sought clues to the fate of more than 1,000 people reported missing in the wildfire.

Authorities say the remains of 71 people have been recovered in and around the Sierra foothills hamlet of Paradise, which was home to nearly 27,000 residents before the wildfire wreaked havoc.

According to Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea the latest official roster of people reported unaccounted for by loved ones had grown to 1,011.

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

“This is a dynamic list,” Honea told reporters at a news conference, explaining that the list was compiled from “raw data” that likely included some duplication of names due to possible spelling errors and multiple sources of information.

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

Reports say the inferno was caused by a so-called Camp Fire on a mountain town in California on the night of November 8.

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