Trump Declares California Wildfires as 'Major Emergency,' Orders Federal Funding for Recovery

President Donald Trump has declared a "major disaster" in California and ordered federal funding to be made available to help recovery efforts in areas affected by wildfires, the White House said in a statement on Sunday.

The White House said Trump had "ordered Federal assistance to supplement State, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by wildfires and high winds beginning on July 23, 2018, and continuing."

Trump tweeted later on Sunday wildfires in California were made "so much worse by the bad environmental laws," also pointing to the need for tree clearing to stop their spread.

California wildfires are being magnified & made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren’t allowing massive amount of readily available water to be properly utilized. It is being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. Must also tree clear to stop fire spreading!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2018

Seven people died in a wildfire in northern California on Saturday, officials said.