Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
Voice of America is funded by the US Federal Government and content it
exclusively produces is in the public domain.
October 23, 2007

Wildfires Continue to Ravage Southern California
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=19FB69F:A6F02AD83191E1601C23CFFCA5BD75B19574F7DCC14957C0 Fires have
destroyed more than 700 homes, forced evacuation of hundreds of
thousands





Firefighter tries to extinguish fire at a house in San Diego, 23 Oct
2007

Fast-moving wildfires have destroyed more than 700 homes and forced
the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of others in the western U.S.
state of California. So far, one person has died and dozens more have
been injured.

At least 13 wildfires have burned more than 95,000 hectares in areas
stretching from San Diego, near the border with Mexico, to Malibu,
near Los Angeles.

The fires are being driven by strong, unpredictable winds that are
expected to exceed 100 kilometers per hour Tuesday.

President Bush has declared a state of emergency for seven of the
affected areas. He says the federal government is sending help to aid
state and local response efforts.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and the top administrator
David Paulison with the Federal Emergency Management Agency will
travel to southern California later Tuesday.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has ordered 1,500 of the
state's National Guard troops to help with firefighting, evacuations
and crowd control.

About a quarter-million people were ordered to evacuate their homes in
the San Diego area alone. Among the evacuees are hospital patients and
prison inmates. Some 10,000 people spent the night at a football
stadium in San Diego.

Los Angeles County Fire Chief Michael Freeman says a downed power line
may have ignited the fire in the upscale community of Malibu. In
Orange County, Fire Chief Chip Prather says the blaze there was
deliberately set.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.


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