Death toll rises to 42 as California anticipates much-needed rain this week after catastrophic wildfires

— -- Ravaged by a slew of deadly wildfires in recent days, Northern California is set to get a bit of relief this week in the form of rain as the death toll has risen to 42.

A storm system is expected to move over the Pacific Northwest later this week and the trailing cold front will most likely bring some much-needed rain to Northern California between Thursday and Friday, according to ABC News meteorologists.

Nearly 10,000 firefighters continued to battle 13 large wildfires burning across California today that have collectively charred more than 210,000 acres of land in the past week. The fires have destroyed thousands of homes and have been blamed for the deaths of 42 people, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

While most of the remaining fires are halfway contained and many evacuation orders have been lifted in Northern California, over 22,000 people were still out of their homes today because of the blazes, authorities said.

“Weather conditions this week will continue to help in the containment progress. In fact, light rain in Northern California is forecast for Thursday night," the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said in its statewide fire summary today. "Residents returning home are urged to be cautious as hazardous conditions may remain."

The northern parts of the Golden State, which has borne the brunt of the fire damage, is forecast to see an influx of cloudy, cooler and wetter weather later in the week.

But a return of dry air, heat and areas of gusty winds could once again raise the wildfire danger early next week, meteorologists said.

Separately, a band of moisture, referred to as Atmospheric River by weather experts, is currently stretching between Asia and North America. It’s expected to bring several storm systems into many parts of the Pacific Northwest through the rest of the week.

The first of these storms have already hit the Pacific Northwest with wind gusts of between 40 and 74 mph.

A number of wind warnings and flood watches are in effect in the western and northern parts of the United States as the storm approaches.