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Fresh wildfires have broken out across parts of southern California, burning down dozens of homes and prompting authorities in San Diego county to evacuate thousands of people and declare a state of emergency.
Scorching temperatures and dry winds fanned at least five fast-moving blazes on Wednesday near San Diego just a day after firefighters contained two other fires in the region.
The worst blaze burned 30 homes in Carlsbad, north of San Diego, and triggered 11,500 evacuation notices.
A heat wave and tinder-dry brush had created a dynamic, dangerous situation, California fire captain Mike Mohler told local television reporters. “It's just unfortunately a recipe for a large fire and that’s what we’re seeing right now.”
Television news footage showed homes reduced to smoking ruins as flames crackled through canyons, with smoke billowing so thick it blotted out the sun and motorists having to use headlights.
"At times it looks like there’s fire in the sky with the wind whipping back and forth," one witness, Ryan Marble, told the Los Angeles Times.
A fire near the Camp Pendleton military base burnt out 700 acres (280 hectares), prompting evacuations of homes and parts of the San Onofre nuclear power plant.
Ground crews backed by helicopters and air tankers contained two fires on Tuesday near San Diego and Santa Barbara, 250 miles north, but knew to expect more.
"Santa Ana winds, record heat and low humidity will persist in southern California through Thursday," said Jon Erdman, a meteorologist with weather.com. "Beginning Friday winds will begin to turn onshore, with much cooler 60s and 70s returning to the coast this weekend."
The fire in northern San Diego county flared on Tuesday morning near Rancho Bernado and by evening had burned 1,550 acres of canyons and ridges, threatening rural homes and triggering evacuation orders for 20,000 people, including several hundred within San Diego city limits.
Local fire departments and the state department of forestry and fire protection cut fires lines and used fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters to douse the flames before they damaged property.
San Diego's mayor, Kevin Faulconer, praised the “fantastic teamwork” of local fire departments and the state department of forestry and fire protection. "Obviously the battle is not over."
The cause of the fires was not immediately known but this week's heatwave combined with brush left tinder-dry by years of drought created ideal conditions for wildfires.
The National Weather Service issued red-flag fire warnings and heat advisories for the region earlier in the week. Some forest roads were closed because of the danger.
California, braced for a worsening drought and water shortages this summer, received potentially good news last week: the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration increased the probability for El Niño conditions developing next winter to 78%, up from 66% last month and 36% last November.
The El Niño weather phenomenon can produce wetter winters in California as warmer-than-normal sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean affect the jet stream.
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