California wildfires chewed through rural areas north of Los Angeles and east of San Diego on Thursday, racing through bone-dry brush and prompting evacuations as the state sweltered under a heat wave that could last through Labor Day.
The Route Fire near Castaic in northwestern Los Angeles County raged through more than 8 square miles of hills containing scattered houses. Traffic was snarled on Interstate 5, a major north-south route running through fire area. Containment was estimated at 12%.
