As PG&E warns of new power outages in California, San Jose mayor Sam Liccardo joins FOX Business to discuss how the state is handling the situation.
LOS ANGELES — Authorities lifted all evacuation orders as firefighters made progress Sunday on a large blaze that sent thousands fleeing homes and farms northwest of Los Angeles.
Crews working in steep terrain were tamping down hotspots and keeping an eye on lingering gusts in mountain areas that could carry embers, said Ventura County Fire Capt. Steve Kaufmann.
"I'd say we're cautiously optimistic," Kaufmann said, citing calmer winds overall and rising humidity levels.
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Firefighters have contained 70% of the blaze, which has burned nearly 15 square miles (39 sq. kilometers) of dry brush and timber. Three buildings were destroyed.
More than 11,000 people evacuated after the flames spread Oct. 31 during dry winds that fanned fires across the state this fall.
In his first recent comments on the California fires, President Donald Trump threatened to cut U.S. aid funding to the state.
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom has done a "terrible job of forest management," Trump tweeted. When fires rage, the governor comes to the federal government for help. "No more," the president tweeted.
Newsom replied with a tweet of his own: "You don't believe in climate change. You are excused from this conversation."
Inmate firefighters battle the Kincade Fire in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., near Geyservillle on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. About 90,000 residents were ordered to evacuate as extreme winds predicted for Sunday morning threaten to rapidly spread the blaze. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Flames from a backfire, lit by firefighters to slow the spread of the Kincade Fire, burn a hillside in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., near Geyservillle on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
San Francisco skyline is photographed from Grizzly Peak Blvd. in Oakland, Calif., Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. Pacific Gas & Electric started shutting off power Saturday around 5 p.m. for an estimated 2.35 million people across 38 counties. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/East Bay Times via AP)
Barbara Sereni helps a neighbor evacuate her dog as a wildfire called the Kincade Fire burns nearby on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019, in Healdsburg, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Dirk Collins helps evacuate his brother Darin from their home in Healdsburg, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The entire communities of Healdsburg and Windsor were ordered to evacuate ahead of strong winds that could lead to erratic fire behavior near the blaze burning in wine country. The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office said it would be the biggest evacuation in the county in more than 25 years. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat via AP)
Remington, 4, and Lauren Irwin pack up their home in Healdsburg, Calif., after officials ordered an evacuation, Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The entire communities of Healdsburg and Windsor were ordered to evacuate ahead of strong winds that could lead to erratic fire behavior near the blaze burning in wine country. The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office said it would be the biggest evacuation in the county in more than 25 years. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat via AP)
Ruby waits for his owner to evacuate as a wildfire called the Kincade Fire threatens the area near Healdsburg, Calif., Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Sodhi Singh, right, and Navneet Singh close up their Chevron station shortly after losing power in Healdsburg, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. A Northern California blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Sodhi Singh, closes up his Chevron station shortly after losing power in Healdsburg, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. Pacific Gas & Electric started shutting off power Saturday around 5 p.m. for an estimated 2.35 million people due to forecasts of extreme winds and fire danger. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
A hillside smolders as firefighters light backfires to slow the spread of the Kincade Fire in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., near Geyservillle on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. About 90,000 residents were ordered to evacuate as extreme winds predicted for Sunday morning threaten to rapidly spread the blaze. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
An air tanker drops retardant while battling the Kincade Fire in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., near Geyservillle on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The blaze forced evacuations orders for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Flames from a backfire, lit by firefighters to slow the spread of the Kincade Fire, burn a hillside in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., near Geyservillle on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. Authorities are fighting a Northern California blaze that forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Firefighters battle the Kincade Fire in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., near Geyservillle, on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
A line of fire snakes along a hillside as firefighters light backfires to slow the spread of the Kincade Fire in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., near Geyservillle, on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Kris Bel, of Concord, checks his smart phone as smoke lingers above the San Francisco skyline viewed from Grizzly Peak Blvd. in Oakland, Calif., Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. Pacific Gas & Electric started shutting off power Saturday around 5 p.m. for an estimated 2.35 million people across 38 counties. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/East Bay Times via AP)
Street lights have no electricity during a Pacific Gas & Electric outage in Lafayette, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. A Northern California blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/East Bay Times via AP)
Stars can be seen in the sky as electricity in a neighborhood is turned off during a Pacific Gas & Electric outage in Walnut Creek, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. A Northern California blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/East Bay Times via AP)
Henry Provencher, 87, is wheeled out of Redwood Retreats, a residential care facility by owner Eric Moessing while evacuating due to the Kincade Fire in Santa Rosa, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The evacuation order encompassed a huge swath of wine country stretching from the inland community of Healdsburg west through the Russian River Valley and to Bodega Bay on the coast, Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick said. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Two people evacuate Redwood Retreats, a residential care facility in Santa Rosa, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. A Northern California blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Ambulances arrive at Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital to evacuate patients in Santa Rosa, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The Kincade Fire forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting officials to start cutting electricity for millions of people in an effort to prevent more fires. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Traffic is backed up heading South on Highway 101 during mandatory evacuations due to predicted danger from the Kincade Fire, in Windsor, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019. The entire communities of Healdsburg and Windsor were ordered to evacuate ahead of strong winds that could lead to erratic fire behavior near the blaze burning in wine country. (Darryl Bush/The Press Democrat via AP)
California has increased fire prevention investments and fuel management projects in recent years while federal funding has shrunk, the governor's office said in a statement.
"We're successfully waging war against thousands of fires started across the state in the last few weeks due to extreme weather created by climate change while Trump is conducting a full on assault against the antidotes," Newsom said.
The state controls just 3% of forest land in California, while the federal government owns 57%, according to numbers provided by the Newsom's office. About 40% of the state's forest are privately owned. Neither of the two major fires currently burning are on forest land.
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Last year Trump made a similar threat as wildfires devastated Malibu and Paradise, California — accusing the state of "gross mismanagement" of forests.
At the time Newsom defended California's wildfire prevention efforts while criticizing the federal government for not doing enough to help protect the state.
In Northern California, more people returned to areas evacuated from a huge fire that burned for days in the Sonoma County wine country.
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The 121-square-mile (313-square-kilometer) fire was 76% contained on Sunday, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
The tally of destroyed homes reached 175 and there were 35 more damaged, authorities said. Many other structures also burned.
The causes of both fires were under investigation but there was a possibility that electrical lines might have been involved — as was the case at other recent fires.
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Southern California Edison said Friday that it re-energized a 16,000-volt power line 13 minutes before the fire erupted in the same area of Ventura County.
Edison and other utilities around the state shut off power to hundreds of thousands of people last week out of concerns that high winds could cause power lines to spark and start fires.
Southern California Edison will cooperate with investigators, the utility said.