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Firefighters Make Slow Progress in Containing California Wildfires

VOA News

   Firefighters have made progress containing wind-driven wildfires in the
   western U.S. state of California that has claimed one life, destroyed
   or damaged dozens of structures, and forced the evacuation of tens of
   thousands of people.

   Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Branden Silverman said Saturday
   morning the blaze in Los Angeles County, named the Saddleridge fire,
   had been 19-percent contained overnight, thanks to slightly cooler
   temperatures and lighter winds. The blaze damaged or destroyed at least
   31 structures, including homes.

   The fire, located in the San Fernando Valley in Northwestern Los
   Angeles County, was only 13-percent contained on Friday, after burning
   more than 3,000 hectares, officials said.

   Authorities ordered mandatory evacuations Saturday of some 23,000 homes
   in an area covering about 100,000 residents.

   The cause of the Saddleridge fire has not been determined, but
   investigators said they were following up on a report of flames from a
   power line when the fire started Thursday night.

   To the east of the Saddleridge fire, another blaze swept through a
   Riverside County mobile home park, destroying dozens of homes.
   Authorities said that fire, which has burned about 330 hectares, had
   been 25 percent contained Saturday.

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