Photos capture the utter devastation from the deadliest wildfires in California history

With the death toll reaching 42 early Tuesday, and hundreds of people still missing, rescue and recovery teams continued their grim work sifting through charred remains of homes and other structures in the vast areas torched by three raging wildfires in Northern California, now the deadliest in the state’s history. The fires were about 30 percent contained as of Tuesday, but officials expect them to continue for several days at least, as ongoing dry weather and winds complicate the challenge.

Over a quarter-million residents have had to evacuate and around 6,500 homes and buildings in three counties —Los Angeles County, Ventura County and Butte County — have been totally burned down, leaving just chimneys and stairs to nowhere amid the scorched rubble.

Firefighters from local departments and out of state, along with federal resources, are working around the clock to contain the spread, building trench lines and dropping flame-retardant chemicals from helicopters flying over the rocky hills.

The cause of the blazes is still under investigation, but local power utility PGE is under scrutiny for a faulty transmission line as a possible source.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the number of structures that have burned down. We regret the typographical error.