A state of emergency was declared in northern areas after mass evacuations, with 2,000 structures destroyed.
About 20,000 people fled from Napa, Sonoma and Yuba counties in response to some the state's worst-ever wildfires.
Such fires are more common in southern California but a combination of dry weather and strong winds has fuelled the destruction in the north.
Cal Fire officials said on Tuesday morning that 17 wildfires in nine counties have burned more than 115,000 acres in just the past 12 hours.
