Two wildfires have raged across California for several days - driving thousands of people from their homes and leaving at least one person dead.
More than 1,600 firefighters battled to contain a fast-spreading wildfire that has forced hundreds of evacuations in the drought-parched canyons north of Los Angeles.
The blaze has burned through at least 51 square miles of brush and destroyed at least 18 homes near Santa Clarita just outside the Angeles National Forest, authorities said.
One man has been found dead in the fire zone. His death is under investigation.
A second fire around 300 miles up the coast is blazing across an area around 10 square miles from the scenic region of Big Sur.
Los Angeles County Deputy Fire Chief John Tripp said: "All the experience we've had with fires is out the window."
Some evacuees were about to return to their homes near Santa Clarita on Sunday, two days after the fire broke out, when unexpected winds stirred up the blaze and it surged back to life.
Lois Wash, 87, said she and her daughter and her dog evacuated, but her husband refused.
"My husband's stubborn as a mule, and he wouldn't leave," Wash told KABC-TV.
"I don't know if he got out of there or not. There's no way of knowing. I think the last time I looked it was about 100 yards from us. I don't know if our house is still standing or not. All we can do is pray."
The fire in the Big Sur region spanned more than 17 square miles, destroyed six homes and forced the evacuation of 1,650 others.
Brock Bradford, lives in a historic house in Palo Colorado, one of the evacuated areas, and could see the flames coming down the road as he evacuated.
"I hope I don't have to rebuild my house," he told the Monterey Herald. "I'm 66."
In Southern California, planes had to be grounded for a long stretch of the afternoon because of the thick smoke.
