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Firefighters defend homes as California wildfires rage on

The Thomas fire, already the US west coast state’s fifth-largest wildland blaze on record, is stillthreatening Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Summerland and Montecito, according to fire officials.

Firefighters grappling with a wildfire that has burned out of control for 10 days on California’s scenic coastline, destroying more than 700 homes, sought on Wednesday to defend homes from flames whipped by resurgent Santa Ana winds. The Thomas fire, already the state’s fifth-largest wildland blaze on record, remained a threat to the communities of Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Summerland and Montecito as darkness fell and winds picked up, fire officials said.

“Very high fuel loading, critically low fuel moistures, above average temperatures and single-digit relative humidities will continue to support fire growth on the west, east and north sides of the Thomas incident,” the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said in a statement. “Firefighters will remain engaged in structure defence operations and scout for opportunities to establish direct perimeter control,” the department said. TRT World spoke to Frances Read who is following developments from Los Angeles.

reuters