California fires: 36 dead as 'ashes and bones' found in ruins - CNN

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BIG BEND, CA - NOVEMBER 10: The Camp Fire burns in the hills on November 10, 2018 near Big Bend, California. Fueled by high winds and low humidity the Camp Fire ripped through the town of Paradise charring 105,000 acres, killed 23 people and has destroyed over 6,700 homes and businesses. The fire is currently at 20 percent containment. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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A plane drops fire retardant on a burning hillside Sunday, Nov. 11, 2018, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Flames burn inside a van as the Camp Fire tears through Paradise, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. Tens of thousands of people fled a fast-moving wildfire Thursday in Northern California, some clutching babies and pets as they abandoned vehicles and struck out on foot ahead of the flames that forced the evacuation of an entire town and destroyed hundreds of structures. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

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An airplane flies over a large wildfire plume from a recent flareup of the Woolsey Fire near Lake Sherwood, Calif., Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018. Forecasters had warned of continuing fire danger in Southern California due to persistent Santa Ana winds, the withering, dry gusts that sweep out of the interior toward the coast, pushing back moist ocean breezes. (AP Photo/Amanda Myers)

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A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, Calif., Tuesday, July 31, 2018. The residence eventually burned. Firefighters pressed their battle against a pair of fires across Mendocino and Lake counties. In all, roughly 19,000 people have been warned to flee and 10,000 homes remain under threat. Noah Berger/AP

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NEW: Cal Fire says Atlas Fire containment is 45%, up from 3% a day before

36 killed in deadliest week of fires in state history

(CNN) —

Reinforcements from other regions are helping firefighters contain more of the largest wildfires devastating Northern California, though strong winds expected over the weekend could challenge those gains, a fire chief said Friday.

Meanwhile, officials are making grim discoveries – victims burnt beyond recognition – as they search blackened ruins of some of the 5,700 homes and business that have been destroyed.

“Some of (the remains) are merely ashes and bones,” Sonoma County Sheriff Rob Giordano said at a Thursday evening news conference. “And we may never get truly confirmative identification on ashes. When you’re cremated, you can’t get an ID.”

Thirty-six people have been killed since the wildfires began Sunday night, making this outbreak one of the deadliest in state history, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).