Sonoma (US), Oct 12 (AP) Wildfires already well on theirway to becoming the deadliest and most destructive inCalifornia history could gain momentum Thursday and erase eventhe modest gains firefighters have made.
Steady winds with gusts up to 45 mph with nearly non-existent humidity are expected to descend on the areas northof San Francisco where at least 23 people have died and atleast 3,500 homes and businesses have been destroyed.
"It's going to continue to get worse before it getsbetter," state fire Chief Ken Pimlott said Wednesday.
Entire cities had evacuated in anticipation of the nextwave, their streets empty, the only motion coming from ashesfalling like snowflakes.
They included Calistoga, the historic resort town of winetastings and hot springs, whose 5,300 people are all underevacuation orders.
Tens of thousands more were also driven from their homesby the flames. A few left behind cookies for firefighters andsigns that read, "Please save our home!"The 22 fires spanned more than 265 square miles (686square kilometers) as they entered their fourth day, many ofthem completely out of control.
Modern, strategic attacks that have kept destruction anddeath tolls low in recent years just haven't worked againsttheir ferocity.
"We are literally looking at explosive vegetation,"Pimlott said. "Make no mistake," he later added, "this is aserious, critical, catastrophic event."The community of Boyes Hot Springs in Sonoma County alsowas told to clear out Wednesday, and the streets were quicklylined with cars packed with people fleeing.
"That's very bad," resident Nick Hinman said when adeputy sheriff warned him that the driving winds could shiftthe wildfires toward the town of Sonoma proper, where 11,000people live. "It'll go up like a candle."The ash rained down on the Sonoma Valley, coveringwindshields, as winds began picking up toward the potentiallydisastrous forecast speed of 30 mph (48 kph).
Countless emergency vehicles sped toward the flames,sirens blaring, as evacuees sped away. Residents manhandledcanvas bags into cars jammed with possessions or filled theirgas tanks.
State fire spokesman Daniel Berlant said 22 wildfireswere burning Wednesday, up from 17 the day before. As thefires grow, officials voiced concern that separate blazeswould merge into even larger infernos.
"We have had big fires in the past. This is one of thebiggest, most serious, and it's not over," Gov. Jerry Brownsaid at a news conference Wednesday, alongside the state's topemergency officials.
They said 8,000 firefighters and other personnel werebattling the blazes and more resources were pouring in fromArizona, Nevada, Washington and Oregon.
Flames raced across the wine-growing region and thescenic coastal area of Mendocino farther north, leveling wholeneighborhoods and leaving only brick chimneys and charredappliances to mark where homes once stood. (AP)RB.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.