Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.</s>California State Parks Superintendent Lori Martin keeps watch on historic buildings as the Carr Fire burns a residence in Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah Berger) less

The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah ... more

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

A burning home near N. Slope Drive off of Highway 299 in Redding during the Carr Fire on Friday, July 27, 2018, in Shasta County, Calif.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

The Carr Fire burns off in the distance over the Sacramento River in Redding, California, on Friday, July 27, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Homes leveled by the Carr Fire line the Lake Keswick Estates area of Redding, Calif., on Friday, July 27, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

A home burns along Sunflower Road during the Carr Fire on July 27, 2018 in Redding, California.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Anna Noland, Kailyn Nash, 16, and James Nash at 16000 block of Cape Cod Drive in the Lake Keswick Estates neighborhood on Sunday, July 29, 2018, in Redding, Calif.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Firefighters work on a burning house on Sunriver Lane during the Carr Fire in Redding, California, on Friday, July 27th, 2018.

Firefighters work on a burning house on Sunriver Lane during the Carr Fire in Redding, California, on Friday, July 27th, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Destroyed properties are seen on Menlo Way and Keswick Dam Road after the Carr Fire destroyed the area in Redding, California, on Saturday, July 28, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

In this Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018 photo, Rachel Pilli poses at the Care Net Pregnancy Center in Redding, Calif. A couple whose flattened trailer tire reportedly started a massive fire in Northern California has received hundreds of cards and letters with supportive messages telling them not to feel guilty. The outpouring of support for an 81-year-old man and his wife started after Rachel Pilli posted a message Sunday on Facebook offering to forward compassionate messages to the couple. less

In this Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018 photo, Rachel Pilli poses at the Care Net Pregnancy Center in Redding, Calif. A couple whose flattened trailer tire reportedly started a massive fire in Northern California has ... more

Homes leveled by the Carr Fire line the Lake Keswick Estates area of Redding, Calif., on Friday, July 27, 2018.

REDDING, Calif. (AP) — A couple whose flattened trailer tire accidentally started a massive fire in Northern California has received more than 100 cards and letters with supportive messages telling them not to feel guilty.

The outpouring of support for an 81-year-old man and his wife started after Rachel Pilli made a Facebook post offering to forward compassionate messages to the couple, the Record Searchlight in Redding, California, reported Wednesday.

Pilli doesn't know the couple, but said a firefighter who knows them told her the woman blames herself and cries day and night. She decided to send them a card with a supportive message and then posted about the couple on social media.

"I couldn't imagine the grief," she said. "If I were the one responsible for the accident I couldn't imagine the shame and the torture I'd feel."

The blaze that has destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and killed eight people started on July 23 with a spark from a vehicle driving on a flat tire, fire officials said. It was 67 percent contained as of Wednesday.

Pilli said she has received more than 100 cards and letters and they keep coming. People have also sent bouquets of flowers and gifts for the couple.

Pilli, a doctor and mother of three, and a friend are reading the letters before they send them to the couple to make sure all are encouraging. Thus far, they have been.

She said she hopes the couple "feel the love and forgive themselves."

"I think the fire has caused us to look into each other's eyes and discover the human kindness in us," Pilli said. "People have been so generous. It's a beautiful story of hope and community."</s>California State Parks Superintendent Lori Martin keeps watch on historic buildings as the Carr Fire burns a residence in Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah Berger) less

The Carr Fire tears through Shasta, Calif., Thursday, July 26, 2018. Fueled by high temperatures, wind and low humidity, the blaze destroyed multiple homes and at least one historic building. (AP Photo/Noah ... more

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

A burning home near N. Slope Drive off of Highway 299 in Redding during the Carr Fire on Friday, July 27, 2018, in Shasta County, Calif.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

The Carr Fire burns off in the distance over the Sacramento River in Redding, California, on Friday, July 27, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Homes leveled by the Carr Fire line the Lake Keswick Estates area of Redding, Calif., on Friday, July 27, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

A home burns along Sunflower Road during the Carr Fire on July 27, 2018 in Redding, California.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Anna Noland, Kailyn Nash, 16, and James Nash at 16000 block of Cape Cod Drive in the Lake Keswick Estates neighborhood on Sunday, July 29, 2018, in Redding, Calif.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Firefighters work on a burning house on Sunriver Lane during the Carr Fire in Redding, California, on Friday, July 27th, 2018.

Firefighters work on a burning house on Sunriver Lane during the Carr Fire in Redding, California, on Friday, July 27th, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

Destroyed properties are seen on Menlo Way and Keswick Dam Road after the Carr Fire destroyed the area in Redding, California, on Saturday, July 28, 2018.

"Before" photos show buildings, homes and neighborhoods prior to the deadly Carr Fire, which has destroyed over 500 structures and moved through over 90,000 acres in the area of Redding.

In this Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018 photo, Rachel Pilli poses at the Care Net Pregnancy Center in Redding, Calif. A couple whose flattened trailer tire reportedly started a massive fire in Northern California has received hundreds of cards and letters with supportive messages telling them not to feel guilty. The outpouring of support for an 81-year-old man and his wife started after Rachel Pilli posted a message Sunday on Facebook offering to forward compassionate messages to the couple. less

In this Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018 photo, Rachel Pilli poses at the Care Net Pregnancy Center in Redding, Calif. A couple whose flattened trailer tire reportedly started a massive fire in Northern California has ... more

Homes leveled by the Carr Fire line the Lake Keswick Estates area of Redding, Calif., on Friday, July 27, 2018.

REDDING, Calif. (AP) — A couple whose flattened trailer tire accidentally started a massive fire in Northern California has received more than 100 cards and letters with supportive messages telling them not to feel guilty.

The outpouring of support for an 81-year-old man and his wife started after Rachel Pilli made a Facebook post offering to forward compassionate messages to the couple, the Record Searchlight in Redding, California, reported Wednesday.

Pilli doesn't know the couple, but said a firefighter who knows them told her the woman blames herself and cries day and night. She decided to send them a card with a supportive message and then posted about the couple on social media.

"I couldn't imagine the grief," she said. "If I were the one responsible for the accident I couldn't imagine the shame and the torture I'd feel."

The blaze that has destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and killed eight people started on July 23 with a spark from a vehicle driving on a flat tire, fire officials said. It was 67 percent contained as of Wednesday.

Pilli said she has received more than 100 cards and letters and they keep coming. People have also sent bouquets of flowers and gifts for the couple.

Pilli, a doctor and mother of three, and a friend are reading the letters before they send them to the couple to make sure all are encouraging. Thus far, they have been.

She said she hopes the couple "feel the love and forgive themselves."

"I think the fire has caused us to look into each other's eyes and discover the human kindness in us," Pilli said. "People have been so generous. It's a beautiful story of hope and community."</s>LAKEPORT (AP) — Officials have lifted all mandatory evacuation orders for the Carr Fire that destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and killed eight people.

The California Department of Fire and Forestry Protection said Wednesday that people are now allowed back in the areas in and around the city of Redding that were impacted by the wildfire that has been burning for more than three weeks.

Cal Fire says some public lands will remain closed until a review of potential hazards is finished.

The blaze that was sparked on July 23 by the rim of a flat tire displaced 38,000 people.

It continued to burn Wednesday and was described as 67 percent contained.</s>
• How to help Carr Fire victims in Redding and Shasta County, California
• Photos from the wildfires across California
• VIDEO: What it's like to fly over the Carr Fire in a Calif. National Guard plane
• VIDEO: Firefighters get brief rest in neighbor's yard during 'apocalyptic' Carr Fire in Shasta County
• VIDEO: New look at destruction from Carr Fire in Redding
• How to prepare for a wildfire evacuation
• PG&E may cut electricity during high fire danger, are you prepared?
• The difference between containing and controlling a wildfire
• These aircraft are on the front lines of the fight against California wildfires
• Wildfire masks: How to best protect yourself from smoke during a fire
• How wildfire smoke can impact your health
• How to sign up for emergency alerts where you live
• Safety tips to remember when returning home after wildfire
• DIY: How to make a pet carrier in case of emergency
• How to prepare your pets in case of disaster

Two major fires burning in Northern California are continuing to grow.The deadly Carr Fire in Shasta and Trinity Counties continues to grow after destroying more than 214,000 acres. It's now 71 percent contained. The massive fire has been going since July 23. More than 1,000 homes are gone. Cal Fire says about 3,800 firefighters are still working to contain it.The deadly Mendocino Complex incident, made up of two fires in Colusa, Lake and Mendocino Counties. The Ranch Fire now stands at more than 317,000 acres and is 69 percent contained. The River Fire is 100 percent contained after burning more than 48,000 acres. firefighter was killed on the front lines battling the fires. Battalion Chief Matthew Burchett was only 42-years-old.</s>A Redding, California family who fled the sprawling Carr Fire returned home to find something fishy had happened while they were away. They were doubtless elated.

According to a tweet from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the family fled the 190,000-acre blaze burning just west of Redding in Northern California. They left behind their finned friend, Grant, and the father told his daughter that Grant likely hadn’t made it after going without food for an extended period.

“Both were in for quite a shock when they returned home to a well-fed fish!” the Cal Fire tweet read.

An accompanying photo showed Grant swimming among the tall grass, marbles and porcelain jug that decorate his abode.

A handwritten note from a member of the department’s Engine 1489 crew said “Fed your fish a few sprinkles. Sorry if we weren’t supposed to.” A notation beneath it from the Corning Police Department said Grant had been fed again August 1 at 10:33 a.m.

“Good luck,” the second note said, as if Grant and his owner hadn’t already enjoyed a great deal of fortune.

The Carr Fire, which began almost three weeks ago, has destroyed almost 1,100 residences. Grant’s wasn’t one of them.

The fire, which is roughly the size of Charlotte, North Carolina, was 59 percent contained as of Sunday morning.

In a Facebook post, Cal Fire used the opportunity as a teaching moment, telling residents: “Remember to have a plan for all your pets.”</s>An elderly couple suspected of accidentally starting Northern California’s deadly Carr fire is receiving an outpouring of support, compassion and forgiveness from their community.

Over the last several days, piles of letters have poured in for the unidentified couple thanks to the efforts of a local woman who heard about their story ― that a flat tire brought the trailer’s metal rim in contact with asphalt, sending sparks into surrounding brush ― and the extreme pain they are feeling from it.

“We learned that his wife is blaming herself for the #CarrFire, because she asked him to take the trailer in the first place,” Redding resident Rachel Pilli posted Monday on the Facebook page, Carr Fire Stories. “She has been crying day and night on her couch. Do you think we can show some grace and extend kindness (and even forgiveness) for the shame and despair that she is experiencing?”

Pilli told the Redding Record Searchlight that she was moved to help the couple after meeting a firefighter at church on Sunday who identified them as his mother’s neighbor.

After posting about their grief, hundreds of comments have flooded the Facebook page, urging the couple to not blame themselves.

“It’s not anything that they did intentionally, it’s not anything that they need to be blamed for, accidents happen all the time,” Pilli said.

The letters will be collected at the Care Net Pregnancy Center in Redding, where Pilli is executive director. Once all of the letters have been collected, she and another woman will help deliver them. A local florist is also gifting a bouquet, she said.

“I think the fire has forced us to look into each others’ eyes and discover the human kindness we have in us,” Pilli told KRCR. “I think it’s so beautiful what came out of this.”

As of Wednesday, the Carr fire, one of more than a dozen raging across California, has grown to 211,038 acres and is 67 percent contained. Three people have been killed in it, 1,077 residential structures have been destroyed, and 191 others damaged, according to Cal Fire.

The Mendocino Complex fire, which is made up of the Ranch fire and River fire, remains the largest of the fires both currently and historically in the state. As of Wednesday morning, it covers more than 363,800 acres and is 64 percent contained. Its cause remains under investigation.</s>Redding resident Rachel Pilli saw what she described as an outpouring of compassion when she asked on Facebook if anyone would like to send cards of support to the couple whose trailer sparked the Carr Fire.

REDDING, Calif. – A Facebook message posted Sunday offering to forward compassionate messages to the couple whose trailer started a deadly wild fire in northern California took off in ways the woman who posted it never expected.

After she read news reports that the Carr Fire had started because of a blown tire on a trailer, Rachel Pilli of Redding prayed for the couple in the car.

“I couldn’t imagine the grief,” she said. “If I were the one responsible for the accident I couldn’t imagine the shame and the torture I’d feel.”

Officials say the Carr Fire began on the afternoon of July 23 close to Whiskeytown Lake when a flat tire caused a rim-riding trailer to scrape the road, causing sparks. The sparks ignited nearby brush and the fire grew quickly – destroying parts of Whiskeytown, flattening most of Keswick, and burning communities in Shasta and west Redding.

The Carr Fire has left a total of eight people dead, including three firefighters. As of Tuesday morning, the fire was 65 percent contained.

More: Amid fire ruins, she got back her dead husband's dog tags

Officials haven't released the couple's names, but when Pilli visited The Gathering Church on Sunday, she met a firefighter who said they were his mother's neighbors. The firefighter agreed to give them a card with Pilli's sympathetic message.

Pilli thought she’d try to collect more well-wishes from friends on Facebook so she could send a few cards from other people along with hers.

On Sunday evening, she posted the following:

"Many of us have been praying for this man, 81. I learned that his wife is blaming herself for the Carr Fire because she asked him to take the trailer in the first place. She has been crying day and night on her couch. They live several miles away from Redding."

When she woke up Monday morning she read dozens of responses. It left her in tears.

It was “an ocean of compassion, of love and grace,” she said.

When Pilli, the executive director of Care Net Pregnancy Center in Redding, posted the same offer in several Facebook groups, she got similar responses. With the growing number of people wanting to send cards, she decided to accept them for the couple at her office.

“We have about a hundred cards here, and gifts, a gift basket,” Pilli said, pointing to a giant basket filled with envelopes and little gifts, with more gifts sitting next to it. “A florist in town is sending a bouquet.”

Pilli and her friend Karen Winters are reading the letters before they send them to the couple to make sure all are encouraging. Thus far, they have been.

“I would think, no matter what race, what color, people are kind,” Pilli said. “Deep down I think that compassion and community are at the core of human beings.”

Winters saw Pilli’s post in the Bethel Carr Fire Support Facebook group.

“It struck a chord in me,” Winters said. “I knew it would strike a chord with other people."

She stepped in to help Pilli go through the messages, she said, because Pilli, a working mother of three, has a lot on her plate.

Winters said she thinks writing and sending the cards is therapeutic – and not just for the recipients.

“It was an accident,” Winters said of the incident that started the Carr Fire. “It really could have been anybody.”

There’s no need for the couple to send a response, Pilli said. She hopes they “feel the love and forgive themselves.”

“I think the fire has caused us to look into each other’s eyes and discover the human kindness in us," Pilli said. "People have been so generous. It’s a beautiful story of hope and community.”</s>The Latest on California wildfires (all times local):

Officials have lifted all mandatory evacuation orders for a deadly blaze in Northern California that destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and killed eight people.

The California Department of Fire and Forestry Protection said Wednesday that people are now allowed back in the areas in and around the city of Redding that were impacted by the wildfire that has been burning for more than three weeks.

Cal Fire says some public lands will remain closed until a review of potential hazards is finished.

The blaze that was sparked on July 23 by the rim of a flat tire displaced 38,000 people.

It continued to burn Wednesday and was described as 67 percent contained.

Firefighters are battling the largest wildfire on record in California as foresters and other experts are working to repair the damage.

Crews doing "suppression repair" mitigate the damage caused not by flames but by the firefighters racing to extinguish them.

They seek to restore private lands, protect the environment and water supply, and prevent erosion that can lead to mudslides like the one that tore through a Santa Barbara-area community in January, killing nearly two dozen people.

It's a massive but often overlooked part of firefighting.

One day last week, dozens of pieces of heavy equipment did repairs at the Mendocino Complex Fire that has charred more than 550 square miles (1,425 square kilometers), an area nearly twice the size of New York City.</s>A man whose trailer accidentally sparked a deadly wildfire in Northern California has received incredible messages of support from victims.

On July 23, the Carr Fire ignited near Redding after the 81-year-old man's trailer got a flat.

The trailer's rim scraped the asphalt, causing sparks to shoot out and land on the dry brush in the area. The wildfire has since claimed the lives of eight people.

But despite the devastation, several residents affected by the blaze have found it in their hearts to send messages of support to the owner of the trailer.

A Facebook page that was set up to tell the stories of the Carr Fire's victims, shared a post asking for people to share their thoughts with the owner.

'We personally know someone who's mom is a neighbor to the man who's trailer accident led to #CarrFire. Many have been thinking and praying for this man,' the post began.

'We learned that his wife is blaming herself for the #CarrFire, because she asked him to take the trailer in the first place. She has been crying day and night on her couch. Do you think we can show some grace and extend kindness (and even forgiveness) for the shame and despair that she is experiencing?'

The administrators of the Carr Fire Stories page encouraged folks to send their notes by Wednesday so that they could include them in card for the couple.

Several heartwarming messages shared the same sentiment: 'It's not your fault.'

'I have never met you guys, but I know you are both loving and deeply caring people. You shouldn't blame yourselves for this accident. That's exactly what it was, an accident,' one user kindly wrote on the Facebook post.

'I pray that you can read all of these messages and let it help you get some peace in your lives again. You are loved and supported by so many people who you have never met. Please let our kind words help heal you pain. Remember.......it was an accident, not your fault,' the same user added.

Another users said: 'I would like to say that I personally would like the family to know that accidents and mistakes happen ..please do not blame your self if I could I would give both of them a big hug.'

'I'm so sorry to hear all the pain this gives you. But, you are not to blame. No one blames you either. It was a tragic event. I guess I can understand your grief but just know no one blames you! I'm just truly sorry you are holding this guilt and I pray you find peace,' another person said.

More than 400 heartwarming messages were shared on the Facebook post and the post has more than 500 shares.

Authorities have not identified the owners of the trailer.

The Carr Fire is now the eighth largest wildfire in California's history.

Firefighters are still battling the blaze and by Wednesday morning about 65 per cent of the fire was contained.

Officials said the fire has scorched 211,019 acres and ruined more than 1,000 homes since it started last month.

There are at least nine major fires burning in the state, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
Officials lift all mandatory evacuation orders for the deadly Carr Fire in Northern California that destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and killed eight people.