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As Lake County resident Dylan Duarte gathered his belongings and rushed to evacuate, he took a minute to document the apocalyptic view in front of him.
"Our county has had major fires for the past three years. This is the first time I've had to evacuate. It's terrifying," wrote Duarte on Twitter.
Videos Duarte shared show a massive mushroom cloud rising above the River Fire as he headed west through the town of Lakeport.
The ominous cloud formation is known as a pyrocumulus cloud. They form over volcanic eruptions or forest fires when an intense heating of the air triggers an upward motion, pushing smoke and causing water vapor to rapidly rise. These foreboding clouds can develop their own weather, even producing thunderstorms with severe winds, which fan the flames and help wildfires spread.