Winds wane as 18 wildfires burn in California
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Dying winds gave California firefighters their first big break on Wednesday after four days battling wildfires, but San Diego faced more calamity as blazes there burned out of control and kept more than half a million evacuees from returning home.
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LOS ANGELES -- When the firestorms of October were finally extinguished and hundreds of thousands of Southern Californians returned to their homes, officials set out to understand how 21 fires erupted in the span of just three days.
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MALIBU, Calif., Oct. 21 -- Nearly a dozen wildfires driven by powerful Santa Ana winds spread across Southern California on Sunday, killing one person near the Mexican border and destroyingseveral homes and a church in celebrity-laden Malibu.
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At least nine wildfires stoked by gusting winds burned out of control in southern California on Sunday, killing one person in San Diego and forcing hundreds to evacuate the wealthy enclave of Malibu where five homes went up in flames.
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ESCONDIDO, California  - Cooler, calmer weather helped firefighters gain the upper hand over seven remaining wildfires in Southern California on Sunday, although state officials said blazes still threatened 12,000 homes.
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Firefighters are battling erratic winds and very low humidity, but making slow gains on a fire that had burned nearly 12,000 acres in the California wine country by Monday morning.
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A lull in strong winds fanning one of the largest wildfires in California history helped firefighters as they battled to bring the blaze under control, state officials said.
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Wildfires that have charred a huge swath of California and destroyed 1,300 homes burned into the night on Wednesday, but firefighters said a break in the weather had given them a chance to go on the offensive.
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GEYSERVILLE, Calif., Sept. 6 -- Firefighters were hampered by erratic wind and low humidity Monday as they made slow progress against a fire that had burned nearly 12,000 acres and four houses in the Northern California wine country.
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Wildfires fed by gale-force winds ravaged Southern California for a second day, destroying hundreds of homes and businesses and charring 267,000 acres.
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By GILLIAN FLACCUS  OJAI, Calif. - Helicopters lifted off as winds calmed Sunday, ferrying water and transporting firefighters to battle a three-week-old wildfire that has scorched more than 200 square miles of the Los Padres National Forest.
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A wildfire in the Sierra Nevada foothills burned 13 homes and 45 other buildings in rural subdivisions before firefighters obtained 85 percent containment over it on Sunday afternoon.
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Mild winds and moist air helped firefighters gain the advantage on two wildfires that have burned through nearly 15,000 acres of dry brush in Southern California.
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Firefighters were hampered by erratic wind and low humidity Monday as they made slow progress against a fire that had burned nearly 12,000 acres and four homes in the Northern California wine country.
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A wind-driven wildfire on Saturday   threatened some of California's premier vineyards and the   winemaking city of Napa, one of several blazes kindled across   the state by dry conditions and seasonal Santa Ana winds.
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Southern California firefighters take advantage of lower winds to contain the remaining major wildfires.
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Dry conditions combined with fierce winds fueled wildfires in at least a dozen areas around Los Angeles and San Diego, threatening homes, forcing evacuations and causing at least one death on Sunday.