The Walnut Hill neighborhood of Dallas looks less like a cluster of 1960s ranch homes and more like a war zone. Downed power lines drape across brush-strewn roads, and treetops are lopped clean off—where trees are left standing at all.

Shea Sumlin, pastor of Northway Church, recalled the aftermath of the violent tornadoes that struck the Dallas metro area on Oct. 20. “All the power’s out. It’s dark. All you could hear is chainsaws and tears. You could smell the gas leaking as firefighters tried to turn off the gas lines,” Sumlin said. 

Teams of firefighters battled a blaze that came within 30 yards of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Ventura County, Calif., on Wednesday. Officials placed thousands more people in Southern California under evacuation orders by Thursday morning, and much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties remained under an extreme fire danger warning.

Authorities have ordered nearly 200,000 people in Northern California to evacuate their homes due to wildfires. A huge fire in Sonoma County north of San Francisco has burned since Wednesday, covering 85 square miles, destroying 94 buildings, and threatening 80,000 other structures. California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency on Sunday.

Authorities ordered as many as 50,000 people to evacuate their homes after fires broke out in the Santa Clarita, Calif., area. Firefighters had only contained 5 percent of the flames by Thursday night.

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity are helping firefighters control the Saddleridge fire in Southern California. The blaze has burned more than 7,900 acres, destroyed or damaged 40 buildings, and was 42 percent contained as of Sunday evening, the Los Angeles Fire Department tweeted. Authorities lifted all evacuation orders on Sunday night. So far, three people have died fire-related deaths.

The Saddleridge fire just north of Los Angeles has destroyed dozens of homes and been linked to at least one death, authorities said Friday. The flames led to the mandatory evacuation of about 100,000 residents. Police said one man died of a heart attack amid the fire, KCBS-TV reported. The fire began Thursday night and had consumed more than 4,700 acres by daybreak.

Residents stocked up on water, food, and gasoline ahead of the largest planned blackout in California history. To keep its equipment from starting wildfires, Pacific Gas and Electric shut off power on Wednesday to nearly 800,000 customers in Northern California as hot, windy weather continued in the region. Schools closed, and residents expected delays on the road caused by nonfunctioning traffic lights. The utility could expand the blackout to Southern California.