US: Largest wildfire in Oregon destroys more than half of Rhode Island

San Francisco, July 27 (IANS): A massive wildfire in the US state of Oregon has quickly spread to about 600 square miles (1,554 square kilometers), an area more than half the land area of ​​Rhode Island, officials said.

The Durkee Fire, which was started by lightning on July 17, is the largest fire in the United States to date. Officials said the fire was only 20 percent contained on Friday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Meanwhile, a single-pilot tanker plane contracted by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management disappeared Thursday while battling another wildfire, the Falls Fire, near the town of Seneca on the edge of the Malheur National Forest.

According to authorities, the plane was found Friday morning. The pilot on board was killed.

According to the government website InciWeb, the Falls Fire has grown to an area of ​​220 square miles (567 square kilometers) and is 55 percent contained.

So far this year, wildfires have burned nearly 1 million acres (4,047 km2) in Oregon and 125,900 acres (509 km2) in Washington state, according to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center in Portland, Oregon.

In California, the Park Fire has forced the evacuation of more than 4,000 residents in Butte County, north of California’s capital, Sacramento. The blaze grew unchecked overnight from 125,000 acres (505 square kilometers) on Thursday to 164,200 acres (664 square kilometers) on Friday morning, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.

More than 110 active fires were burning across the country on Friday, covering an area of ​​7,250 square kilometers, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.