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Zinke: Northern California Fire Costs Likely in Billions

by Associated Press

   PARADISE, CALIFORNIA --

   Costs associated with a deadly Northern California wildfire will likely
   be in the billions, said U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Monday.
   Zinke, who was back in the town of Paradise on Monday, said he has
   never witnessed such devastation. The Camp Fire killed at least 85 and
   leveled thousands of homes.
   "There's a lot of things I'd rather spend this federal money on rather
   than repairing damage of things that have been destroyed," he said.
   Zinke nodded to other public services, such as improving visitor
   experiences at Yosemite National Park or thinning forests.
   The U.S. government has distributed more than $20 million in assistance
   for people displaced by the catastrophic wildfire in Northern
   California, a Federal Emergency Management Agency official said Monday
   as hundreds of searchers kept looking for more human remains.
   The massive wildfire that destroyed nearly 14,000 homes in the town of
   Paradise and surrounding communities was fully contained over the
   weekend after igniting more than two weeks ago.

   FEMA spokesman Frank Mansell told The Associated Press that $15.5
   million has been spent on housing assistance, including vouchers for
   hotel rooms. During an interview in the city of Chico, he said disaster
   response is in an early phase but many people will eventually get
   longer-term housing in trailers or apartments.
   FEMA also has distributed $5 million to help with other needs,
   including funeral expenses, he said.
   About 17,000 people have registered with the federal disaster agency,
   which will look at insurance coverage, assets and other factors to
   determine how much assistance they are eligible for, Mansell said.