California’s wildfires are still resulting in devastation across the state, with at least 42 dead and another 50 missing, in addition to 6,900 structures that have been burned to the ground.
But cooler temperatures and higher levels of humidity have allowed firefighters to contain around 85 percent of the once-uncontrollable blazes, and now, federal and local authorities are starting to turn their attention to the long, arduous process of recovering from the immense damage the fires have wrought.
FEMA announced on Thursday that the fires in and around Sonoma County currently rank fourth on their list of disasters, measured by damage and number of people killed in a single incident. Santa Rosa city council member Chris Rogers wrote on Facebook that cleanup will begin “within the next few weeks, with a goal of being done by early 2018.” The Army Corps of Engineers will handle the first wave of toxic testing before handing the recovery effort over to CalRecycle, the umbrella organization that manages the state’s recycling and waste management programs.
Evacuees are also eager to return to their demolished homes in hopes of salvaging at least some items from the rubble. As Yvette Escutia told NBC Bay Area: “It’s just memories that we would like to get. My wedding ring is still there, my charm bracelet that my husband gave me when my son was born. Little things like that. We know we’re not going to be able to repair anything that was burned or anything but I wish that, I hope that my ring is still there,” Escutia said.
To read the full story, visit https://jezebel.com/toxic-cleanup-from-californias-wildfires-expected-to-ta-1819714636.