Raging Wildfires Destroy 14 Homes Georgia      *

Apr 18 09:47 PM US/Eastern

WAYCROSS, Ga. (AP) - A swift wildfire destroyed 14 houses Wednesday in
southeastern Georgia, where more than 1,000 people had been forced from
their homes earlier in the week, officials said. No injuries were reported.

The blaze, which had burned about 40 square miles, or 25,000 acres,
ignited Monday near Waycross when a tree fell on a power line, then
raced through tinder-dry forest to the Okefenokee National Wildlife
Refuge, one of the nation's best-preserved wetland areas, officials said.

Many of those evacuated from the area went to a shelter or moved in with
relatives, officials said.

Classes at Waycross schools were canceled after buses were unable to run
on some routes because of smoky conditions, and the private Okefenokee
Swamp Park was evacuated and its animals moved to safety.

Another fire that broke out Tuesday out about 40 miles south of there,
near Fargo, and had spread to 2,200 acres, or 3.4 square miles, by
Wednesday afternoon, officials said. The cause of that fire was unknown.

"Because they are around the Okefenokee, it's really hampered our
ability to fight the fires," said Eric Mosley, spokesman for the Georgia
Forestry Commission. "There aren't many roads or trails into the
Okefenokee and it's hard to get equipment in."

Jim Burkhart, a refuge ranger, said the larger fire had entered the
refuge by Wednesday afternoon, but not the smaller one. The 403,000-
acre wildlife refuge is a haven for animals including alligators and
wading birds.

The U.S. Interior Department, which manages the refuge, is bringing in a
team that specializes in firefighting operations, Burkhart said.

"We've got all our firefighting crews on the west side, plowing fire
lines," he said.

A drought has left the forests vulnerable to wildfires, and the swampy
land can be too boggy to support firefighting equipment, such as
bulldozers to create firebreaks, said Alan Dozier, the forestry
commission's chief firefighter.

High winds also have made it difficult to control the fires, officials said.

A third fire broke out Tuesday evening and damaged a few hundred acres
in Berrien County, about 50 miles from the Waycross blaze, but was "90
percent contained" by Wednesday night, Mosley said.

Firefighters also battled a four-square-mile fire near Nahunta.

In Southern California, strong winds spread a fire from a tire warehouse
to an adjacent hillside and ignited one house near California State
University, Los Angeles.