Publication Date October 11, 2017 | CNN

The California wildfires, by the staggering numbers

United States

More than a dozen wildfires are scorching Northern California, aided by low humidity and high winds. Here are some eye-popping numbers that tell the scope of the tragedy.

Over 122,000 acres have been burned, much of it the lush, picturesque landscape of the state's beloved wine country. The area burned so far in Napa and Sonoma is three times larger than Washington, D.C.

The fires torched 20,000 acres in about 12 hours on Monday [October 9] alone. This means the fires advanced at a rate of more than a football field every three seconds.

The smoke from the fires led to the worst air pollution on record for Northern California. Air quality is considered "very unhealthy" when the index reaches 201. At one point Tuesday, the air score in parts of Napa hit 486.