Wildfires rage in California, more winds expected

Wildfires rage in California, more winds expected

Wildfires burned unchecked on Tuesday in Southern California, with hundreds of thousands of people forced to evacuate, at least 700 homes destroyed, and little hope for relief from the hot desert winds fanning the flames.

The National Weather Service said "strong and damaging winds" will continue near Los Angeles through mid-afternoon, and high wind warnings may be issued for some areas Tuesday night. In San Diego, the hot, dry winds fanning the flames were expected through Wednesday. More than a dozen fires, whipped by hot, dry Santa Ana winds gusting to 70 miles per hour (113 kph) have swept unchecked over the past two days from Santa Barbara to the Mexican border 230 miles to the south.

Some 200,000 acres have burned, overwhelming fire crews and state emergency services. One person has been killed and more than three dozen injured.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger summoned aid from 1,500 National Guard troops, including 200 from the Mexican border, to help with firefighting, evacuations and crowd control.

Some 250,000 people who had been ordered to evacuate ahead of the flames spent the night out of their homes, about 10,000 of them at a San Diego area football stadium that had been converted to an emergency shelter.

Neighboring states, including Nevada and Arizona, rushed in crews and equipment. President George W. Bush early on Tuesday declared an emergency in the state and authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief in the seven counties stricken by wildfires.

In San Diego County south of Los Angeles, some 500 homes and 100 other buildings were reported burned to the ground by the Witch Fire. In the mountain communities of Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs, outside Los Angeles, some 130 homes were destroyed and fire crews fought to save others in the path of the flames.

"This is a tragic day for San Diego County and for California," Schwarzenegger said. "As you know, 250,000 people have been evacuated."

LEARNING FROM PAST MISTAKES

Schwarzenegger said FEMA officials would arrive in San Diego on Tuesday morning to start working with those harmed by the fires, as a result of state and local efforts to push through a federal disaster declaration.

"American cities and states have learned from mistakes made in the past. We want to make sure we are prepared and we will be here every step of the way," he said.

Some 10,000 people displaced from their homes in the San Diego area spent the night at Qualcomm Stadium, normally home to San Diego Chargers football team.

Among them were about 300 people evacuated from nursing homes. Volunteers set up tents for families and seniors in the walkways of the stadium.

"There's no word on our house," said Don Parmaley, who was at the stadium with his wife, Rose. "We were able to find a hotel room last night but they had to evacuate the hotel this morning."

Fire officials said that while the seasonal Santa Ana winds that had whipped the flames were expected to abate on Tuesday, humidity would remain low and crews were expected to fight an uphill battle in terrain made tinder-dry by a drought.

The firestorms closed major state highways, schools and businesses and plumes of thick black smoke drifted across much of Southern California, blotting out the sun.

One official said the Witch Fire could prove as devastating as 2003's so-called Cedar Fire that burned 280,000 acres

and killed 15 people.

A blaze in the seaside enclave of Malibu that had blackened 2,400 acres was partly contained, having destroyed 10 buildings including a landmark castle and a church.

(Additional reporting by Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles and Marty Graham in San Diego)