Thousands of exhausted firefighters continued to battle with raging wildfires across southern California on Wednesday, while calmer weather offered a slim light of hope for containing the worst disaster in the populous US state.

Firefighters maintained a defensive line around Stevenson Ranchin, northwestern Los Angeles County where a fire that expanded from nearby Ventura County advanced nearer to the mountain communities.

Some 70 fire engines were in Stevenson Ranch on Wednesday morning as firefighting helicopters dropped water from the air in a fresh assault on the fire, which has scorched more than 100,000 acres (about 40,000 hectares) and 81 structures in Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

Following a night of calm winds, the danger to Stevenson Ranch had lessened, said Los Angeles county fire Inspector Ed Osorio.

Still, Kelley Gouette, chief of the Simi Fire Department, told NBC4 TV that residents in the area should be ready to evacuate if that becomes necessary.

Voluntary evacuations were suggested Tuesday for Stevenson Ranch, and evacuations were recommended for Sunset Point and the neighborhood of Sagecrest Circle and Hollyhock Court as flames were getting too close to homes.

But even Gouette said that "most of the danger is passed for those folks" in Stevenson Ranch. He said that firefighters deployed against the Simi Valley fire would take advantage of cooler temperatures by improving firelines, using both bulldozers and hand crews.

The eastern flank of the fire extended from State Route 126 in the north to the 118 Freeway in the south, and includes the outskirts of Stevenson Ranch, just west of the 5 Freeway which was closed Wednesday in both directions.

The Simi Valley fire started Friday northwest of Santa Clarita in Val Verde, and spread to Ventura County before doubling back into Los Angeles County.

Osorio said the winds were calmer Wednesday, and firefighters were hoping that the lower temperatures and higher humidity expected would help them in their struggle against the blaze.

Firefighters used water drops from the air Tuesday while ground crews burned backfires to rob the blazes of fuel and keep the flames away from Los Angeles County communities such as Porter Ranch, Chatsworth and Stevenson Ranch.

The Piru fire, to the north in Ventura County, has scorched another 30,570 acres (about 12,228 hectares), claiming at least three structures.

Fires have been raging to the south and to the east for the past week in what Governor Gray Davis called the worst natural disaster in the populous US state.

The worst of the firestorms is in San Diego County, where four fires are reported to have claimed 12 lives, charred more than 300,000 acres (about 120,000 hectares) and destroyed more than 1,250 structures.

The town of Julian, near San Diego, resembled a ghost town as residents were forced to flee the advancing fires. To the south of Julian, the resort town of Cuyamaca with about 160 residents had been almost destroyed as of Wednesday, said Chief Bill Clayton of the California Department of Forestry.

In San Bernardino County, 50 miles east of Los Angeles, four people have died in two fires that have merged days ago and were spreading across more than 102,000 acres (about 40,008 hectares) and burned 625 structures.

Fire burning up the south face of the San Bernardino range threatened resort communities from Lake Arrowhead east to Big Bear Lake, where about 80,000 residents had been ordered to evacuate since the weekend, including thousands who jammed the highway out of Big Bear with bumper-to-bumper traffic Wednesday.

About 11,000 firefighters were battling the flames, which by Tuesday had already cost the state more than US$24 million. California is utilizing a staff of 8,000 firefighters, and 3,000 firefighters are from out-of-state.

More resources from Arizona and Nevada arrived Tuesday. Each state volunteered the use of 50 firetrucks, and Nevada also sent three helicopters.

Meanwhile, governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger paid his first visit since his Oct. 7 election to the Washington D.C. on Wednesday to urged federal assistance to California to deal with the devastating wildfires.

"I came basically to Washington to establish relationships and to make sure we are getting more federal money for California as I promised in my campaign," Schwarzenegger told reporters following a meeting with House Republicans.

"But of course the recent events, the huge disastrous fires have changed my mission a little bit. I'm now looking for federal money for the people, the victims of the fire."

President George W. Bush has declared four fire-torn Californian counties as disaster area, which are now eligible for federal financial aid to help dislodged residents find new homes and businesses resume operation as soon as possible.

(Xinhua News Agency October 30, 2003)