USA: California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger sees no quick end to Southern California wildfires

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger visits communities affected by wildfires and declares a state of emergency for seven counties from Santa Barbara down to San Diego. Ten wind-driven wildfires raged across Southern California on Monday (October 22), keeping thousands of evacuees from returning home for a second day, while authorities forecast two more days of extreme fire conditions. At daybreak, in the seaside celebrity enclave of Malibu, flames licked up against the sides of palatial homes and reporters estimated at least 20 homes were in danger. In Rancho Bernardo, north of San Diego, buildings were burnt to the ground. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency for seven counties from Santa Barbara down to San Diego. He visited communities affected by the fires on Monday. "Any time you have a home burnt down or a commercial structure or a church, I mean that's really bad. And we have to do everything we can to help these people to get back on their feet as quickly as possible, that's why we all are here today so that we can work together and really provide as much help as possible. But first, we have to just pray that the wind slows down because the wind is our number one enemy right now and the dry weather. So we hope that these conditions -- weather conditions -- change as quickly as possible," Schwarzenegger said. Fire officials speculate that the Malibu fire might have been sparked by power lines downed by the wind, while in Orange County, Fire Chief Chip Prather said a big fire that threatened the city of Irvine was arson. The famously fierce Santa Ana winds were forecast to gust through the mountain passes and canyons at up to 90 mph (145 kph) on Monday, while temperatures were set to reach over 90 degrees F (32 C) during the day.

ITN Source | October 23, 2007

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