Post-apocalyptic level of destruction caused by California fires

By Meghan Keneally From ABC News

Dueling fires in California have caused mass evacuations and left destruction in its wake.

The Valley Fire, which is centralized about 100 miles north of San Francisco, has grown to cover 50,000 acres, according to authorities.

So far, 20,000 people have been evacuated and up to 1,000 homes or businesses have been destroyed, a California battalion chief told ABC News on Sunday.

Wildfires Ravage the West Coast
Now that some of the areas of destruction can be viewed for the first time since those flames cooled, areas of Middletown, California, look almost like a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

Some homes have been turned to charred ash, while certain metal objects, like stove tops and cars, remained standing, though in a far worse state than they once were.

CalFire Captain Jeff Roberts said on Sunday night that the destruction is not likely to spread at the same rate this week, thanks to three big factors: cooler weather, higher humidity and calmer winds.
The one downside of the cooling weather is that it has trapped a layer of smoke close to the ground, making visibility too dangerously low to fly aircraft.

The second fire, the Butte fire, is raging about 180 miles further east. As of this morning, more than 4,500 fire crews were battling the blaze, and it had already charred 65,300 acres. Only a quarter of the blaze was contained by this morning, according to authorities.

IMAGES:
PHOTO:A sign hangs above an entryway to a home destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown, Calif. Eric Risberg/AP Photo
PHOTO:A sign hangs above an entryway to a home destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown, Calif.
PHOTO: The figure sits on a rock wall outside a hillside home destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Hidden Valley, Calif. Eric Risberg/AP Photo
The figure sits on a rock wall outside a hillside home destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Hidden Valley, Calif.
“Today the weather is cooperating very well,” Roberts told ABC News on Sunday. “If we can get past the next 24 hours, we’ll be in a really big turning point.”
PHOTO: A burned out washer and dryer are seen amidst the rubble of a burned home during the Valley fire in Middletown, Calif., Sept. 13, 2015.AFP/Getty Images
California Wildfires Destroy Homes, Force Evacuations
PHOTO: A frame and trees are all that is left around a home destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown, Calif. Eric Risberg/AP Photo
A frame and trees are all that is left around a home destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown, Calif.
PHOTO: Melted metal flows from a burned out car abandoned on a highway near the Valley fire in Middletown, Calif., Sept. 13, 2015. AFP/Getty Images
Melted metal flows from a burned out car abandoned on a highway near the Valley fire in Middletown, Calif., Sept. 13, 2015.
PHOTO: A kitchen stove sits among the remains of home, Sept. 13, 2015, destroyed by a fire near Mokelumne Hill, Calif. Rich Pedroncelli/AP Photo
A kitchen stove sits among the remains of home, Sept. 13, 2015, destroyed by a fire near Mokelumne Hill, Calif.
PHOTO:A carport frame and burned cars remain outside an apartment complex destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown, Calif. Eric Risberg/AP Photo
PHOTO:A carport frame and burned cars remain outside an apartment complex destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown,
PHOTO: A burned vehicle remains among a number of homes destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown, Calif.Eric Risberg/AP
A burned vehicle remains among a number of homes destroyed by fire, Sept. 13, 2015, in Middletown, Calif.
PHOTO: A burned truck and structures are seen at the Butte Fire, Sept. 13, 2015 near San Andreas, Calif. David McNew/Getty Images
A burned truck and structures are seen at the Butte Fire, Sept. 13, 2015 near San Andreas, Calif.

ABC News’ Matt Gutman contributed to this report.

For more on this story and others go to: http://abcnews.go.com/US/post-apocalyptic-level-destruction-caused-california-fires/story?id=33747518