Children have returned to school across a Northern California county devastated by the Camp Fire three weeks ago.
Butte County Office of Education Superintendent Tim Taylor said there were tears, hugs and anxiety as 31,000 children returned to school on Monday.
Butte County officials cancelled all classes following the November 8 wildfire which devastated some communities, inundated others with smoke and is being blamed for killing at least 88 people.
Nearly 5,000 public school students are going to classes in other buildings because their own schools were damaged or destroyed or are inside areas that are still evacuated.
Michelle John, who is superintendent of Paradise Unified School District, says counselors are in nearly every classroom to help children who were traumatized by their escape through a burning town and the loss of their homes.
She says counselors were brought in from around the country to work with teachers, many of whom lost their own homes, and prepare them to support the students.