California’s Camp fire claims 63 fatalities, 40% contained

California’s deadliest wildfire in the state’s history, the Camp fire in Butte County, has claimed 63 fatalities and is contained to 40 percent, according to latest data from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

Overall, the fire has so far burned 141,000 acres, destroying 9,700 residences and 290 commercial structures.

In addition, the Woolsey fire continues burning in Los Angeles County and Venture County. While it is smaller than the Camp fire with 98,362 acres burned and is to 62 percent contained, according to latest Cal Fire data, the area is very affluent and includes high-value property owned by celebrities. The fire has already destroyed the homes of the singers Miley Cyrus, Neil Young and Robin Thicke and the actor Gerard Butler.

So far, 548 structures have been destroyed in the Woolsey fire and 157 have been damaged. The event has claimed two fatalities.

While it may be too early to estimate the total losses from the November fires, it is anticipated that the insurance industry is facing an aggregated payout reaching well into the billions of US dollars, according to Aon’s Weekly Cat Report.

The historic 2017 wildfires in the US led to nearly $16 billion in insurance payments; almost entirely from the October and December events in California.