Walls of Flame Devour Southern California

SAN BERNARDINO, California, October 27, 2003 (ENS) - Driven by whistling Santa Ana winds, Southern California wildfires, which have burned in various locations for days, fused into a wall of flame over the weekend. At least 13 people have died, and 900 homes have been destroyed as the blazes consumed some 300,000 acres.

From the Mexican border north to Los Angeles, a deadly combination of very high winds, soaring temperatures, and dry fuels have spread terror and destruction in what Governor Gray Davis has called the worst fire in 10 years.

More than 100,000 people have been ordered to evacuate, and many needed no evacuation order, fleeing their homes moments ahead of the blaze. At least 30,000 more houses are still in danger.

Many of those who lost their lives were caught in the Cedar/Paradise fire which began Saturday afternoon in an area of old growth brush near San Diego about 10 miles east of Ramona and has devoured 100,000 acres.

Smoke from the wildfires envelops the city of San Diego today. (Photo courtesy Destination WebCam)

The huge fire was touched off near the mountain town of Julian when a hunter who was lost set off a signal fire, officials said. The hunter has been arrested and may be charged.

The nearby Pine Hills Fire forced the evacuation of San Diego Country Estates in Ramona where several homes were destroyed. The fire swept across the Barona Reservation through the Moreno Valley to Eucalyptus Hills where San Diego Police assisted with evacuations.

Farther north and east near San Bernadino, the 56,470 acre Grand Prix fire began October 21 in an area of dense old growth chaparral and dry grass. There are conflicting reports about possible arson, and an investigation is underway.

At least 15 structures and one outbuilding have been destroyed and more than 3,400 residences and 100 commercial properties are threatened in unincorporated San Bernardino County and the cities of Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, and Upland.

High voltage power lines, supplying about 25 percent of the power to the Los Angeles basin, and a public safety communication site are threatened by the Grand Prix fire. But fire is contained and controlled at this hour in the city of Rancho Cucamonga and evacuated residents are beginning to return to their homes.

Some 5,000 residents had been evacuated, including the campus of California State University, San Bernardino. Among the evacuees across southern California are patients at Patton State Hospital, and 230 inmates of the Descanso Detention Facility in San Diego who were transferred to other areas jails.

A wall of fire advances across southern California. (Photo courtesy U.S. Interior Department)

Areas of timber in the San Bernardino National Forest weakened by drought and insect damage are in the path of this fire, and treetop fires have been spotted in the area. No estimate has been made as to when this fire will be contained.

Another fire began October 21 just after midnight on the Camp Pendleton Marine Base in an area of chaparral and grass. About 300 residences and six commercial properties are threatened along with military communication and training facilities and high voltage transmission lines, but this fire is approximately 75 percent contained, fire officials said today.

Governor Davis has called out the National Guard to assist in fighting the fires and has proclaimed a state of emergency in San Bernardino, Ventura Counties, Los Angeles and San Diego Counties.

The governor asked that President George W. Bush issue a major disaster declaration for all four counties. President Bush today responded by declaring a state of emergency exists in the State of California, covering all four counties.

Requested by the county Boards of Supervisors, the disaster declarations will initiate reimbursement to local governments for their emergency response costs, provide funds for some costs associated with damaged public infrastructure, and fund individual homeowner assistance.

"Based on the number of residences and business properties destroyed, we currently estimate private sector damages to be more than $120 million," the governor said.

Davis praised the emergency personnel involved in the effort. "Thousands of firefighters and emergency personnel are performing heroic work on the front lines and behind the scenes," said the governor. "This is an extraordinary effort is saving lives and preventing even greater tragedy."