500,000 ordered to flee California wildfires

LOS ANGELES: Half a million Californians have been ordered to evacuate their homes and flee the spreading wildfires blazing across southern California on Tuesday, US media reported.   

The Los Angeles Times reported that the wind-driven infernos have destroyed some 700 houses and businesses and led authorities to urge some 500,000 people to leave their homes, mostly in the San Diego area in south-eastern California.   

The destruction prompted Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to deploy National Guard soldiers to help stretched firefighters.   

President George W. Bush declared an emergency in California and ordered federal aid be directed to the fire-stricken region. At least 13 fires blazed throughout the region, where thousands of firefighters struggled to contain flames and evacuate residents.   

Only one person has been killed and more than 20 people injured. Some 260,000 acres (1,000 square kilometers) have been destroyed in the fires, which are among the worst in the state's history.   

Many parts of the state, including Los Angeles, have experienced record low rainfalls and record-high temperatures this year, leaving vast swathes of countryside at the mercy of fires.    The flames are being propelled by a seasonal weather system known as "Santa Ana" winds. Authorities recorded powerful gusts of between 60 and 100 miles (97 and 160 kilometers) per hour on Monday. The desert wind is not forecast to diminish until Wednesday.   

Local news reported that two big-rig trucks had been knocked over by powerful gusts in the southern California mountain passes near the town of Lake Arrowhead. "It's a tragic time for California," said California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger after touring charred remains of buildings in the celebrity enclave of Malibu on Monday.    

The fires are so vast that several could be seen from space and smoke was so thick in the area that weather radars mistook it for rain clouds.  The White House announced Tuesday that Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 'is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency' in southern California.   

The Bush administration was heavily criticized after Hurricane Katrina struck the US gulf coast in 2005 for FEMA's slow response and poor coordination with state officials. Several thousand personnel backed up by 316 fire engines, 19 air tankers, 15 bulldozers and eight helicopters battled the myriad infernos throughout the night.  "These fires that are sweeping through Southern California are a perfect storm," said Los Angeles County supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky.  

"The fire department and law enforcement personnel have been stressed almost beyond the point of reason because there are so many fires going." "The winds are erratic and unpredictable. There is no telling where the fires will move and when."   

Los Angeles County Fire Chief Michael Freeman said he hoped to get help from Northern California, Arizona and Nevada firefighters to help his exhausted crews. "We've been talking about the drought and the Santa Ana (winds), and with very low humidity it is a design for disaster," he said.   

In San Diego, many evacuees were sent to Qualcomm Stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers' American football team. One woman, Nancy Canfield, said she was relieved to have escaped with her family, including her grandchildren.   

When she left her home the air quality was 'horrible', she told the San Diego Union Tribune. "By the time we got from the house to the car, the babies' faces were covered in soot," she said. "I'm just thankful we all got out, we're all safe. I don't care about anything else."   

In Malibu, residents were struggling to come to terms with damage inflicted by the blaze.    Thousands of buildings have been evacuated, including the homes of 'Titanic' director James Cameron and 'Grease' movie star Olivia Newton-John. TMZ.com reported that the exclusive Promises rehabilitation center, which has hosted stars Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan, was being evacuated.   

The causes of the different fires raging throughout the state varied, with a fallen power line believed to be the cause of the blaze in Malibu and arson blamed for a fire in Orange County that torched 15,000 acres.