Sawt Falasteen - Over 130 homes lost in California wildfire: officials

Hurricane-strength winds that battered the area this week fuelled an explosion in the Mountain Fire near Camarillo, which grew rapidly to over 20,000 acres (8,000 hectares).

Thousands of people in the path of the inferno were forced to flee, some describing how they had only minutes to gather crucial possessions and pets as unpredictable flames leapt from home to home.

Linda Fefferman said she knew she had to go when she smelled smoke.

"I'm trying to load the car with animals and important papers, my oxygen concentrator, and when it got too smoky for me, I knew I had to get out," she told a local broadcaster.

A neighbor with a chainsaw helped remove a fallen tree that was blocking her path, and Fefferman was able to flee.

"I went down to the Goodwill parking lot, watched the smoke, you know, probably our own house burning.

"Nothing is left. It's gone," she said. "It's all gone."

Fefferman said she thought 14 or 15 houses on her street alone had been destroyed by the flames.

- 'Threat to critical infrastructure -

Authorities said Thursday that initial inspections revealed at least 132 homes had been lost, with 88 more damaged.

The blaze erupted on Wednesday morning and spread rapidly, fanned by fierce seasonal Santa Ana winds from California's desert interior.

Gusts up to 80 miles (130 kilometers) an hour pushed smoke and flames sideways, with terrifying footage showing fire engulfing brush, orchards and properties.

Those winds dropped Friday, with meteorologists saying they did not expect them to return for at least a few days.

That was welcome news for firefighters, some of whom had been on the frontlines for 36 hours straight, said Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner.

Nevertheless, the blaze remained only seven percent contained, and the area -- home to 30,000 people -- was not out of danger.

"The fire is burning in steep, rugged terrain, with dry and receptive fuels, which have challenged containment efforts," said an update from Cal Fire.

"The fire remains a threat to critical infrastructure. Islands of unburned fuel will continue to burn within the fire footprint."

California Governor Gavin Newsom visited the area Thursday, and declared a state of emergency, which should free up resources.

More than 2,500 personnel were engaged in the fight.

Crews on the ground have been defending homes with hose lines and working alongside bulldozers trying to remove fuel.

Aircraft on Friday dropped water and retardant in an effort to stem the blaze.

Utility companies have shut off electricity to thousands of customers in the area -- a common practice during high winds in California where toppled power lines are often the cause of wildfires.

Two relatively wet years have left California's countryside flush with vegetation that is now dry and exceedingly flammable after a long, hot summer.

While fires, drought and strong winds are all natural features of the local environment, scientists say human-caused climate change is affecting weather patterns and increasing the likelihood of catastrophic events.

H.Darwish--SF-PST