California's largest and deadliest wildfire this year has ravaged homes and businesses in the small town of Klamath River in the state's north.
- The McKinney Fire has burned more than 228 square kilometres and claimed four lives
- The fire has destroyed most of the homes, the trailer park, post office and community hall in Klamath River
- Scientists say climate change has made wildfires more frequent and destructive
Roger Derry, 80, has lived at Klamath River for 40 years.
He said the fire was a blow for the town of about 200 people.
"Some of our oldest homes, 100-year-old homes, are gone," he said.
"Good people, good folks, for the most part, live here and in time will rebuild.
"But it's going to take some time now."
The blaze, named the McKinney Fire, has burned more than 228 square kilometres since it first erupted on Friday.
It remains out of control.
It is the largest of several wildfires burning in the Klamath National Forest.
The fire has destroyed most of the homes at Klamath River, including those in a trailer park, along with the post office, community hall and other scattered businesses.
The cause has not been determined.
When it began, the McKinney Fire was only spread across a couple of hundred acres and firefighters thought they would have it under control quickly.
But then a thunderstorm cell came in with ferocious wind gusts that within hours pushed it into an unstoppable blaze.
Mr Derry and his son made the decision not to evacuate.
Their home, which they had tried to safeguard by trimming away nearby bushes, survived.
Firefighters showed up and dug firebreaks around the neighbourhood, but they could see the fire as it tore its way through the places around them.
"When that fire came over that ridge line, it had 100-foot (30.8m) flames for about 5 miles (1.6km) and the wind was blowing," Mr Derry said.
"There was nothing to stop it."
Thousands of people remain under evacuation orders, 100 buildings from homes to greenhouses have burned and at least four bodies have been found in the region.
The area saw another thunderstorm on Tuesday that dumped heavy rain and swelled rivers.
Fire officials said crews were able to use bulldozers on Tuesday to carve firebreaks along a ridge to protect homes and buildings in the county seat of Yreka.
Scientists have said climate change has made the United States' west warmer and drier over the past three decades and will continue to make weather more extreme and wildfires more frequent and destructive.
Wildfires in Montana, Idaho and Nebraska have destroyed some homes and continue to threaten communities.
In north-western Montana, a fire that started on Friday near the town of Elmo has burned some structures. However authorities said they did not immediately know if any were homes.
Fire officials said the blaze measured 66 square kilometres on Tuesday, with 10 per cent containment.
Some residents were forced to flee on Monday as gusting afternoon winds drove the fire.
The Moose Fire in Idaho has burned more than 220 square kilometres in the Salmon-Challis National Forest while threatening homes, mining operations and fisheries near the town of Salmon.
It was 23 per cent contained on Tuesday, according to the National Interagency Coordination Center.
A wildfire raging in north-western Nebraska led to evacuations and destroyed or damaged several homes near the small city of Gering.
The Carter Canyon Fire began on Saturday as two separate fires that merged.
It was more than 30 per cent contained by Tuesday.
AP