The Mendocino Complex Fire is now the largest wildfire in California history, breaking a record set only months earlier.
Experts say this may become the new normal as climate change coupled with the expansion of homes into undeveloped areas creates more intense and devastating blazes.
On Monday, the twin fires burning just miles apart became the largest collective wildfire in state history after destroying more than 443 square miles of forest and rural areas. The Mendocino Complex fire is only a couple of square miles larger than a deadly blaze last December but it’s still growing. Officials say the twin fires threaten 11,300 buildings.
In all, more than 14,000 firefighters are battling major blazes throughout California.