Montecito Wildfires Destroy 100 Homes in Exclusive California Town

Around 100 homes were destroyed during ravishing wildfires in Montecito, California on Thursday and Friday.

More than 2,000 acres (800 hectares) were burned after the fire broke out Thursday in the hills Montecito, an exclusive community 80 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Montecito is home to a bevy of multi-million dollar mansions.

Flames driven by wind gusts of up to 113 kilometers 70 miles (113 kilometers) per hour. 4,500 people were forced out of their homes under orders of mandatory evacuation, while another 4,500 were advised to leave their homes. 1,200 firefighters have been deployed to Montecito to fight the fires, while McDonnell-Douglas DC-10 airplanes have been flying over the area, dropping thousands of gallons of flame retardants.

The wildfire also swarmed through Westmont College, the liberal arts college in Santa Barbara. The fires destroyed a dormitory and several buildings on the campus. Several students were evacuated and held in the Westmont College gymnasium.

There have been no reported fatalities but 13 injuries, including three suffering from burns and 10 suffering from smoke inhalation.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) declared a state of emergency in Santa Barbara County early Friday.

Oprah Winfrey, actor Rob Lowe and Hollywood icon Michael Douglas are all reported to own homes in Montecito but there were no reports they had been affected. Winfrey owns a 50-million-dollar 42-acre estate in the area.

In 2006, Forbes Magazine ranked Montecito the seventh most expensive postal code, with homes averaging a sales price of $2.9 million.

In June and July this year, a series of about 2,000 fires raged across the state, scorching some 900,000 acres of land, according to AFP.

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