Rampant wildfires force firefighters to pick their battles

The unprecedented number and size of wildfires burning in California this year has forced firefighters to strategically choose which ones to tackle.

Their plan is this: Crews are dispatched to protect communities in the path of flames, while blazes are allowed to chew through hectares of forest land.

Officials say the tactic is necessary in a fire season that already has seen hot weather, rough terrain and lightning storms complicate efforts to bring blazes under control.