More than two million acres have been destroyed as wildfires continue to rage across California.

According to the state’s department of forestry and fire protection a record area is ablaze with 14,000 firefighters currently battling 24 separate fires.

At least one person is believed to have died and dozens are still trapped in the Sierra National Forest.

Rescue helicopters tried to reach a group of hikers trapped by wildfires on Monday night, but were beaten back by heavy smoke. The group remain stranded by Lake Edison, 250 miles east of San Francisco and a further attempt was being made Tuesday.  

Reports claim that one of the fires in El Dorado. which has spread more than 7,000 acres, may have been started at a gender reveal party.

Meanwhile, the Creek Fire blaze - which has not yet been contained - has been the most ferocious of all the fires, burning across 78,000 acres since beginning in the Sierra Mountains on Friday.

Los Angeles County recorded the hottest ever day in California on Sunday with highs of 49.4C (121F).

And while temperatures are expected to drop across the state from Tuesday onwards, the National Weather Service are fearful that powerful winds could facilitate the spread of the flames further.

Cal Fire tweeted on Monday about the fire caused by the gender reveal party saying: "Cal Fire reminds the public that with the dry conditions and critical fire weather, it doesn't take much to start a wildfire.

"Those responsible for starting fires due to negligence or illegal activity can be held financially and criminally responsible."

Nearly 1,000 wildfires have started in California since August 15 and more than two million acres of land have burned in the state in 2020 alone.

This tops the 1.96m acres which burned in 2018, the previous record since Cal Fire began collecting the data back in 1987.

Cal Fire also report that eight people have been killed this year as a result of the blazes and 3,300 structures have been destroyed.