Death toll may rise in destructive California wildfire

Douglas Nelson, left, shows his wife, Amy, an item he found as they survey the remains of their home devastated by a wildfire, Saturday, June 25, 2016, in South Lake, Calif. The couple said they lost everything including their dog. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) Douglas Nelson, left, shows his wife, Amy, an item he found as they survey the remains of their home devastated by a wildfire, Saturday, June 25, 2016, in South Lake, Calif. The couple said they lost everything including their dog. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

By Associated Press June 26, 2016 4 min read

LAKE ISABELLA, Calif. (AP) – Lighter winds are helping firefighters make gains on a voracious and deadly wildfire in central California that has burned 150 homes and claimed two lives.

The toll may rise.

Firefighters may have found human remains Saturday when they began going through neighborhoods to count houses and mobile homes incinerated by the blaze. In an unrecognizable mobile home, they found what appears to be a set of human remains, but because they were so badly burned forensic investigators will have to determine whether they belonged to a person or animal, Kern County Sheriff’s spokesman Ray Pruitt said.

The tally of burned homes rose from 80. Entire blocks were reduced to rubble, and at least 2,500 homes remained threatened.

Meanwhile, the winds that drove the fire through small southern Sierra Nevada communities eased by late afternoon, helping firefighters contain 10 percent of the blaze.