Hot, dry winds might worsen California wildfire

Hot, dry Santa Ana winds were expected to fan several relentless wildfires in southern California on Thursday, where hundreds of houses have burned and tens of thousands have fled their homes around Los Angeles, the second-largest US city

Hot, dry Santa Ana winds were expected to fan several relentless wildfires in southern California on Thursday, where hundreds of houses have burned and tens of thousands have fled their homes around Los Angeles, the second-largest US city.

Firefighters monitor a section of the Thomas Fire along the 101 freeway. Pic/AFP

The winds, which blow westward from the California desert, were forecast to reach 75 mph on Thursday. That could stoke several blazes burning in the Los Angeles area that have already caused, about 200,000 people to evacuate.

Video and photographs on social media showed flame-covered hillsides along busy roadways as commuters slowly made their way to work or home, rows of houses reduced to ash and firefighters spraying water on walls of fire as they tried to save houses.

500
Acres of land burned in the plush Bel-Air area

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