US:More than half a million people have been told to leave their homes in California as scorching, gale-force winds whipped up wildfires in an area stretching from the Mexican border to Santa Barbara.
The fires, which have burned more than 400,000 acres since Sunday, have killed two people and injured dozens as more than 1,200 homes and businesses have been destroyed.
San Diego firefighter Mitch Mendler said he lost count of the number of homes he saw burning.
"It was like Armageddon. It looked like the end of the world," he said.
President George Bush declared a state of emergency in southern California, where 346,000 homes have been evacuated in San Diego County alone. At more than two people per home and with evacuations elsewhere, that could mean more than 700,000 people have fled to shelters, hotels, relatives and friends.
"It's basically a mass migration here in San Diego County. The numbers we're seeing are staggering," said Luis Monteagudo, a spokesman for the county's emergency effort.
Firefighters battling 15 separate fires were hampered by dry winds of up to 90km/h as fires spread so quickly that even hotels serving as temporary shelters were being evacuated yesterday.
Mr Bush has sent federal disaster officials to California but he does not plan to visit the area himself, in case his visit would detract from firefighting efforts.
"All of us across this nation are concerned for the families who have lost their homes and the many families who have been evacuated from their homes. We send the help of the federal government," the president said yesterday.
The Pentagon agreed yesterday to send six Air Force and Air National Guard water-dropping aircraft to help the firefighting effort after a request by California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Visiting Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, where up to 10,000 people have taken shelter, the governor pledged to do everything in his power to support the firefighting effort and help those who have lost their homes. "I will be relentless all the way through this," Mr Schwarzenegger said.
The fires are the worst to hit California since 2003, when 22 people died in an inferno that swept through the state. Mr Schwarzenegger said California had learnt valuable lessons in 2003, and insisted the emergency operation was more effective this time.
"It will have dramatic economic impact. It will be probably in the hundreds of millions of dollars. But this area has been very resilient. The last fire they had in 2003, the big fire, San Diego came back in a big way, and I think that will also happen here," the governor said.
San Diego's mayor, Jerry Sanders, said emergency calls had been placed to 270,000 households asking people to evacuate and that swift evacuations had helped keep casualties to a minimum.
"If there's a statistic that so far stands out, it's the fact that we have had minimal loss of life. People are moving, people are getting the message and they are responding. Having said that, the weather continues to be unpredictable," he said.
Mr Sanders pleaded with San Diego residents to avoid using mobile phones so that emergency crews could do their work.
"Please stay at home today if you can. Stay off the freeways. Allow our emergency vehicles and people needing to evacuate to move around freely," he said.
The flames are being driven by the so-called Santa Ana winds, which carry scorching air from desert areas in the eastern part of the state. The gusting winds have carried burning embers as far as 3km, kindling new fires and allowing smaller fires to merge into huge conflagrations.
Embers shooting in all directions have prevented emergency crews from forming traditional fire lines and severely limited aerial bombardment.
"Lifesaving is our priority. Getting people out from in front of the fire - those have been our priorities," said Don Camp, a spokesman for the California department of forestry and fire protection.
Firefighters are hoping a break in the weather today will help their effort to contain the blazes but forecasters suggest that any improvement in the weather could be brief and high winds are likely to return.