Cal Fire firefighter Anthony Quiroz douses water on a flame as he defends a home during the CZU Lightning Complex Fire in Boulder Creek, California, U.S. August 21, 2020. REUTERS/Stephen LamShare this contentFELTON, Calif.: California's lightning-sparked wildfires more than doubled in size into some of the largest in state history on Friday , forcing over 175,000 people to flee their homes.
The state has been hit by its worst dry-lightning storms in nearly two decades. Over 11,000 strikes have sent fire racing through grassland and forest parched by record-breaking heat. "The fire continues to advance, and much of what will happen next depends on weather conditions such as wind direction and speed," UCSC Chancellor Cynthia Larive wrote in a tweet, after ordering the evacuation of the campus, which is located in hills around 4.8km northwest of coastal city Santa Cruz's boardwalk.
Around 1,000 firefighters in the area fought multiple fires blown in shifting directions by erratic winds as propane tanks and ammunition stores exploded in homes, he said.