'We lost Greenville': Wildfire decimates California town

Officials say more than 100 homes have burned in and around the town of Greenville as California’s largest wildfire surged through the Sierra Nevada

GREENVILLE, Calif. -- A 3-week-old wildfire engulfed a tiny Northern California mountain town, leveling most of its historic downtown and leaving blocks of homes in ashes as crews braced for another explosive run of flames Thursday amid dangerous weather. The Dixie Fire, swollen by bone-dry vegetation and 40 mph (64 kph) gusts, raged through the northern Sierra Nevada community of Greenville on Wednesday. A gas station, church, hotel, museum and bar were among the fixtures gutted in the town dating back to California's gold rush era where some wooden buildings were more than 100 years old. The fire “burnt down our entire downtown. Our historical buildings, families' homes, small businesses, and our children’s schools are completely lost," Plumas County Supervisor Kevin Goss wrote on Facebook. Plumas County Sheriff Tom Johns, a lifelong resident of Greenville, said that “well over" 100 homes were destroyed, as well as businesses.