Wildfires fanned by fierce desert winds forced the evacuations of nearly 250,000 people Monday in San Diego County, including hundreds who were being moved by school bus and ambulance from a hospital and nursing homes.
More than a dozen wildfires had engulfed Southern California, killing at least one person, injuring dozens more and threatening scores of structures.
The fires have burned about 100,000 acres in San Diego County, said county Supervisor Ron Roberts. “This is a major emergency,” he said.
“We have more houses burning than we have people and engine companies to fight them,” San Diego Fire Captain Lisa Blake said. “A lot of people are going to lose their homes today.”
About a dozen blazes erupted over the weekend, feeding on drought-parched land from the high desert to the Pacific Ocean. One person was killed and several injured in a fire near the Mexican border, and dozens of structures have burned across the region.
Things got worse Monday, when new fires sprouted and others merged. Some of the worst damage was in Malibu, where a church, homes and a historic castle were destroyed.
All San Diego Police Department officers and off duty detectives were ordered to return to work to help with evacuations.
In many cases, crews couldn’t begin to fight the fires because they were too busy rescuing residents who refused to leave, fire officials said.
“They didn’t evacuate at all, or delayed until it was too late,” said Bill Metcalf, chief of the North County Fire Protection District. “And those folks who are making those decisions are actually stripping fire resources.”
One blaze devoured more than 5,000 acres in northern San Diego County and forced the evacuation of the community of Ramona, which has a population of about 36,000. Several structures were burned on the edge of town and sheriff’s deputies called residents to alert them the fire was approaching the city, San Diego sheriff’s Lt. Phil Brust said.
“The winds are up, it’s very, very dangerous conditions,” San Diego County spokeswoman Lesley Kirk said. “Fires are popping up all over the place.”
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