Emergency declared as California fire rages

Thousands of firefighters battled into the early hours yesterday, losing ground to the huge blaze burning through the famed Sonoma wine region in northern California. California's governor declared a statewide emergency on Sunday as the wind-driven Kincade Fire spread to more than 34,000 acres (14,000 hectares), forcing residents to flee. In Los Angeles, meanwhile the local fire department issued mandatory evacuation orders after a "very dynamic" brush fire broke out west of a major highway, US 405, near The Getty museum. Refugees from the Kincade blaze recalled hasty departures as they waited it out in the safety of a community center in Petaluma, California.