Layna Rivas returned to her home Thursday to find nothing but smoldering rubble after a massive Northern California wildfire burned across her property, killing her chickens and snatching her dream of creating an artists' community in the mountains.

Thousands of people have been driven from their homes by the blaze that has chewed through more than 100 square miles of dry brush and trees.

The flames mowed down some properties and left others untouched near Clearlake Oaks, California, about 100 miles north of San Francisco.

Forty-three homes have been destroyed with 13,000 people ordered or warned to evacuate.

"It's hard to know what's the sign or what sign to look for, what's it all mean?" Rivas wondered as she picked through the rubble of her home that she was turning into a retreat for artists and musicians. "It rages one side and rages here and takes away your home and not another home and it's hard, it's hard to decipher all that but just going to have to keep going with the grace of God."

Firefighters had the blaze at least 40 percent contained by late Thursday. It is the largest of 23 fires statewide and takes up nearly a third of the 10,000 firefighters dispatched in drought-stricken California.

Layna Rivas returned to her home Thursday to find nothing but smoldering rubble after a massive Northern California wildfire burned across her property, killing her chickens and snatching her dream of creating an artists' community in the mountains.

Thousands of people have been driven from their homes by the blaze that has chewed through more than 100 square miles of dry brush and trees.

The flames mowed down some properties and left others untouched near Clearlake Oaks, California, about 100 miles north of San Francisco.

Forty-three homes have been destroyed with 13,000 people ordered or warned to evacuate.

"It's hard to know what's the sign or what sign to look for, what's it all mean?" Rivas wondered as she picked through the rubble of her home that she was turning into a retreat for artists and musicians. "It rages one side and rages here and takes away your home and not another home and it's hard, it's hard to decipher all that but just going to have to keep going with the grace of God."

Firefighters had the blaze at least 40 percent contained by late Thursday. It is the largest of 23 fires statewide and takes up nearly a third of the 10,000 firefighters dispatched in drought-stricken California.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake Oaks, California – August 6, 2015

1. Layna Rivas walks on her property where she lived and had been creating an artists community in the mountains, pointing out where a music studio once stood with a piano, hoisting piano from ashes

2. Burned rubble of studio building

3. Rivas walks up stairs that now lead to nowhere

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Layna Rivas, lost home to wildfire:

"There was a music studio, made out of straw bale, and the inside was all plaster finished and it even had gold lining in it. A beautiful baby grand sat right in the middle overlooking this valley and it was beautiful."

5. Various of burned structures, Rivas and friend picking through rubble

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Layna Rivas, lost home to wildfire:

"It's hard to know what's the sign or what sign to look for, what's it all mean? It rages one side and rages here and takes away your home and not another home and it's hard, it's hard to decipher all that but just going to have to keep going with the grace of God."

7. Rivas digging through rubble

8. Various of burned truck on property

9. Rivas walking her property, pointing out where her kitchen had been (UPSOUND: "This was my kitchen … ")

10. Various of rubble that was her kitchen

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Layna Rivas, lost home to wildfire:

"Keep on keepin' on, and to all those other families out there, my heart goes out to you, as well. We feel you. We are all in this together."

12. Rivas and friend walking on rubble of home

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: apus035966

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity overnight helped thousands of firefighters battling an unruly Northern California wildfire, but officials worried that strong afternoon winds and hotter temperatures Wednesday could reignite portions of the blaze.

Firefighting officials said crews made progress with some help from light rain Tuesday, getting the fire less than a quarter contained. The blaze has charred 106 square miles, and isn't expected to be largely contained until at least Monday.

Much of the fire Wednesday morning was smoldering on the ground as firefighters positioned themselves around its perimeter in anticipation of possible flare-ups Wednesday afternoon while they continued to build containment lines aimed at corralling the blaze.

Fire spokesman Steve Kaufmann said the winds Wednesday afternoon would likely fuel the fire burning on the ground, spreading flames by carrying embers

"The last few days expect for yesterday, we would see little spot fires grow out of those ones because the winds would carry the embers, so we'll definitely have to see what today brings us," he said.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling the smoky blaze.

The fire is burning about 110 miles north of San Francisco along rugged, parched terrain in Lake, Yolo and Colusa counties.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. Since it started last Wednesday, more than 13,000 people were required or urged to leave their homes, vacation cabins and campsites.

Teams on Tuesday were able to build a buffer between the flames and some of the estimated 6,900 homes it threatens. Despite the fire's growth, no additional homes were consumed outside the two dozen already destroyed.

The fire is by far the largest of 11 burning in Northern California.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: apus035966

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity overnight helped thousands of firefighters battling an unruly Northern California wildfire, but officials worried that strong afternoon winds and hotter temperatures Wednesday could reignite portions of the blaze.

Firefighting officials said crews made progress with some help from light rain Tuesday, getting the fire less than a quarter contained. The blaze has charred 106 square miles, and isn't expected to be largely contained until at least Monday.

Much of the fire Wednesday morning was smoldering on the ground as firefighters positioned themselves around its perimeter in anticipation of possible flare-ups Wednesday afternoon while they continued to build containment lines aimed at corralling the blaze.

Fire spokesman Steve Kaufmann said the winds Wednesday afternoon would likely fuel the fire burning on the ground, spreading flames by carrying embers

"The last few days expect for yesterday, we would see little spot fires grow out of those ones because the winds would carry the embers, so we'll definitely have to see what today brings us," he said.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling the smoky blaze.

The fire is burning about 110 miles north of San Francisco along rugged, parched terrain in Lake, Yolo and Colusa counties.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. Since it started last Wednesday, more than 13,000 people were required or urged to leave their homes, vacation cabins and campsites.

Teams on Tuesday were able to build a buffer between the flames and some of the estimated 6,900 homes it threatens. Despite the fire's growth, no additional homes were consumed outside the two dozen already destroyed.

The fire is by far the largest of 11 burning in Northern California.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake, California – August 5, 2015

1. Various of fire trucks, smoldering trees, burnt earth

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, captain, public information officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

++SOUNDBITE COVERED BY PREVIOUS SHOT++

"A lot of fire deep seeded that's just smoldering on the ground so what happens during the day, especially when the winds come up is those fires will start getting bigger and then we'll start seeing flames and the last few days expect for yesterday, we would see little spot fires grow out of those ones because the winds would carry the embers, so we'll definitely have to see what today brings us."

3 . Firefighters climbing hill

4 . SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, captain, public information officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

++SOUNDBITE PARTIALLY COVERED BY PREVIOUS SHOT++

"We expect the temperatures to go up and we expect the humidity to decrease substantially and that should dry out some of our vegetation fuel beds so I expect to see a little bit of increase in activity today."

5. Various of fire trucks, firefighters

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, captain, public information officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

++SOUNDBITE COVERED BY PREVIOUS SHOT++

"If we have another good day, I expect to see some (containment) numbers increase and I definitely expect to see some numbers increase if we're able to hold those containment lines with the winds that we're expecting today."

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity overnight helped thousands of firefighters battling an unruly Northern California wildfire, but officials worried that strong afternoon winds and hotter temperatures Wednesday could reignite portions of the blaze.

Firefighting officials said crews made progress with some help from light rain Tuesday, getting the fire less than a quarter contained. The blaze has charred 106 square miles, and isn't expected to be largely contained until at least Monday.

Much of the fire Wednesday morning was smoldering on the ground as firefighters positioned themselves around its perimeter in anticipation of possible flare-ups Wednesday afternoon while they continued to build containment lines aimed at corralling the blaze.

Fire spokesman Steve Kaufmann said the winds Wednesday afternoon would likely fuel the fire burning on the ground, spreading flames by carrying embers

"The last few days expect for yesterday, we would see little spot fires grow out of those ones because the winds would carry the embers, so we'll definitely have to see what today brings us," he said.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling the smoky blaze.

The fire is burning about 110 miles north of San Francisco along rugged, parched terrain in Lake, Yolo and Colusa counties.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. Since it started last Wednesday, more than 13,000 people were required or urged to leave their homes, vacation cabins and campsites.

Teams on Tuesday were able to build a buffer between the flames and some of the estimated 6,900 homes it threatens. Despite the fire's growth, no additional homes were consumed outside the two dozen already destroyed.

The fire is by far the largest of 11 burning in Northern California.

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity overnight helped thousands of firefighters battling an unruly Northern California wildfire, but officials worried that strong afternoon winds and hotter temperatures Wednesday could reignite portions of the blaze.

Firefighting officials said crews made progress with some help from light rain Tuesday, getting the fire less than a quarter contained. The blaze has charred 106 square miles, and isn't expected to be largely contained until at least Monday.

Much of the fire Wednesday morning was smoldering on the ground as firefighters positioned themselves around its perimeter in anticipation of possible flare-ups Wednesday afternoon while they continued to build containment lines aimed at corralling the blaze.

Fire spokesman Steve Kaufmann said the winds Wednesday afternoon would likely fuel the fire burning on the ground, spreading flames by carrying embers

"The last few days expect for yesterday, we would see little spot fires grow out of those ones because the winds would carry the embers, so we'll definitely have to see what today brings us," he said.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling the smoky blaze.

The fire is burning about 110 miles north of San Francisco along rugged, parched terrain in Lake, Yolo and Colusa counties.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. Since it started last Wednesday, more than 13,000 people were required or urged to leave their homes, vacation cabins and campsites.

Teams on Tuesday were able to build a buffer between the flames and some of the estimated 6,900 homes it threatens. Despite the fire's growth, no additional homes were consumed outside the two dozen already destroyed.

The fire is by far the largest of 11 burning in Northern California.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake, California – August 5, 2015

1. Various of fire trucks, smoldering trees, burnt earth

2. Various of fire trucks, staging area

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, captain, public information officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

"We expect the temperatures to go up and we expect the humidity to decrease substantially and that should dry out some of our vegetation fuel beds so I expect to see a little bit of increase in activity today."

4. Various of burned area, smoldering trees

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, captain, public information officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

"If we have another good day, I expect to see some (containment) numbers increase and I definitely expect to see some numbers increase if we're able to hold those containment lines with the winds that we're expecting today."

6. Various of fire trucks, firefighters hiking up steep hillside to work on containment line.

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, captain, public information officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

"A lot of fire deep seeded that's just smoldering on the ground so what happens during the day, especially when the winds come up is those fires will start getting bigger and then we'll start seeing flames and the last few days expect for yesterday, we would see little spot fires grow out of those ones because the winds would carry the embers, so we'll definitely have to see what today brings us."

8. Fire truck

Firefighters spent much of the day Wednesday putting out hot spots along a scenic highway while dropping water from helicopters deep in the interior of a raging wildfire in Northern California. The blaze has charred more than 100 square miles and destroyed 39 homes.

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity overnight Tuesday helped thousands of firefighters gain more containment but strong afternoon winds and hotter temperatures Wednesday caused some hot spots to flare up as the fire continued to burn.

"The term is really called chasing smokers, where you see things smoking, you want to put water on those because that's letting you know that something is still burning," said firefighter Jason Shanley. "There's still something that's wanting to burn and what will happen is you'll lose whatever you've gotten so far if you're not careful."

Firefighting officials said crews made progress with some help from light rain Tuesday, getting the fire less than a quarter contained. The blaze has charred 106 square miles, and isn't expected to be largely contained until at least Monday.

Much of the fire Wednesday was smoldering on the ground as firefighters positioned themselves around its perimeter and continued to build containment lines aimed at corralling the blaze.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling the smoky fire, which is burning about 110 miles north of San Francisco along rugged, parched terrain in Lake, Yolo and Colusa counties.

The cause is under investigation. Since it started last Wednesday, more than 13,000 people were required or urged to leave their homes, vacation cabins and campsites.

The fire is by far the largest of 11 burning in Northern California.

Firefighters spent much of the day Wednesday putting out hot spots along a scenic highway while dropping water from helicopters deep in the interior of a raging wildfire in Northern California. The blaze has charred more than 100 square miles and destroyed 39 homes.

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity overnight Tuesday helped thousands of firefighters gain more containment but strong afternoon winds and hotter temperatures Wednesday caused some hot spots to flare up as the fire continued to burn.

"The term is really called chasing smokers, where you see things smoking, you want to put water on those because that's letting you know that something is still burning," said firefighter Jason Shanley. "There's still something that's wanting to burn and what will happen is you'll lose whatever you've gotten so far if you're not careful."

Firefighting officials said crews made progress with some help from light rain Tuesday, getting the fire less than a quarter contained. The blaze has charred 106 square miles, and isn't expected to be largely contained until at least Monday.

Much of the fire Wednesday was smoldering on the ground as firefighters positioned themselves around its perimeter and continued to build containment lines aimed at corralling the blaze.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling the smoky fire, which is burning about 110 miles north of San Francisco along rugged, parched terrain in Lake, Yolo and Colusa counties.

The cause is under investigation. Since it started last Wednesday, more than 13,000 people were required or urged to leave their homes, vacation cabins and campsites.

The fire is by far the largest of 11 burning in Northern California.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake, California – August 5, 2015

1. Various of water-dropping helicopter, smoke

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Jason Shanley, firefighter from San Diego:

"That's what they're doing. The term is really called chasing smokers, where you see things smoking, you want to put water on those because that's letting you know that something is still burning, there's still something that's wanting to burn and what will happen is you'll lose whatever you've gotten so far if you're not careful."

3. Various of water-dropping helicopter

4. Various of crews spraying flare-ups of fire along road

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Robert Delambert, firefighter from San Rafael, California:

"So we're patrolling the roadside, everything south of Highway 20, so CHP can reopen the road, but what we're finding is the relative humidity is coming down, the temperatures are aligning just right to where all of our embers are starting to heat up again creating small little spot fires all along the roadside so our job is to clean it up in order for the safety of the public to be able to travel the roadways."

6. Various of smoke from fire burning in mountains

Layna Rivas returned to her home on Thursday to find nothing but smoldering rubble after a massive Northern California wildfire burned across her property, killing her chickens and snatching her dream of creating an artists' community in the mountains.

Thousands of people have been driven from their homes by the blaze that has chewed through more than 100 square miles (259 square kilometres) of dry brush and trees.

The flames destroyed some properties and left others untouched near Clearlake Oaks, California, about 100 miles (161 kilometres) north of San Francisco.

Forty-three homes have been burned to the ground with 13,000 people ordered or warned to evacuate.

"It's hard to know what's the sign or what sign to look for, what's it all mean?" Rivas wondered as she picked through the rubble of her home that she was turning into a retreat for artists and musicians.

Firefighters had the blaze at least 40 percent contained by late Thursday.

It is the largest of 23 fires statewide and takes up nearly a third of the 10,000 firefighters dispatched in drought-stricken California.

Clearlake Oaks, California � 6 August 2015

1. Layna Rivas walks on her property where she lived and had been creating an artists' community in the mountains, pointing out where a music studio once stood with a piano, hoisting piano from ashes

2. Burned rubble of studio building

3. Rivas walks up metal stairs

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Layna Rivas, lost home to wildfire:

"There was a music studio, made out of straw bales, and the inside was all plaster finished and it even had gold lining in it. A beautiful baby grand (piano) sat right in the middle overlooking this valley and it was beautiful."

5. Various of burned structures, Rivas and friend picking through rubble

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Layna Rivas, lost home to wildfire:

"It's hard to know what's the sign or what sign to look for, what's it all mean? It rages one side and rages here and takes away your home and not another home and it's hard, it's hard to decipher all that but just going to have to keep going with the grace of God."

7. Rivas digging through rubble

8. Various of burned truck on property

9. Rivas walking on her property, pointing out where her kitchen had been (UPSOUND: "This was my kitchen � ")

10. Various of rubble that was her kitchen

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Layna Rivas, lost home to wildfire:

"Keep on keepin' on, and to all those other families out there, my heart goes out to you, as well. We feel you. We are all in this together."

12. Rivas and friend walking on rubble of home

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 2072106

Hundreds of people driven from their homes by a massive Northern California wildfire are anxious to check on their pets and possessions, but for now are stuck camping in cars and trailers, drinking coffee from Styrofoam cups and hoping their houses have not been reduced to ash.

Cassandra Raffaelli and others have been staying in the parking lot at a Moose Lodge, a fraternal organization that is serving food to evacuees.

She has been there since Sunday and doesn't know what she will find when she returns home to Spring Valley, a threatened town in a parched rural area 100 miles north of San Francisco.

"We don't have anywhere else to go," she said. "I have stuff there that you can't replace that I couldn't get out, stuff that came from family members that are no longer alive, so just going back to that, it would be so scary, devastating and scary, I wouldn't know what to do."

The flames mowed down some properties and left others untouched near Clearlake, California, about 100 miles north of San Francisco.

Chairs, burned books and broken dishes sat in piles of ash, and burned-out cars dotted the rubble.

Forty-three homes have been destroyed and 13,000 people have been ordered or warned to evacuate as the blaze chewed through more than 107 square miles of dry brush.

Despite the destruction, crews were gaining ground, getting the blaze close to halfway contained Thursday after more than a week of erratic behavior. It is the largest of 23 fires statewide and takes up nearly a third of the 10,000 firefighters dispatched in drought-stricken California.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 2072106

Hundreds of people driven from their homes by a massive Northern California wildfire are anxious to check on their pets and possessions, but for now are stuck camping in cars and trailers, drinking coffee from Styrofoam cups and hoping their houses have not been reduced to ash.

Cassandra Raffaelli and others have been staying in the parking lot at a Moose Lodge, a fraternal organization that is serving food to evacuees.

She has been there since Sunday and doesn't know what she will find when she returns home to Spring Valley, a threatened town in a parched rural area 100 miles north of San Francisco.

"We don't have anywhere else to go," she said. "I have stuff there that you can't replace that I couldn't get out, stuff that came from family members that are no longer alive, so just going back to that, it would be so scary, devastating and scary, I wouldn't know what to do."

The flames mowed down some properties and left others untouched near Clearlake, California, about 100 miles north of San Francisco.

Chairs, burned books and broken dishes sat in piles of ash, and burned-out cars dotted the rubble.

Forty-three homes have been destroyed and 13,000 people have been ordered or warned to evacuate as the blaze chewed through more than 107 square miles of dry brush.

Despite the destruction, crews were gaining ground, getting the blaze close to halfway contained Thursday after more than a week of erratic behavior. It is the largest of 23 fires statewide and takes up nearly a third of the 10,000 firefighters dispatched in drought-stricken California.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake, California – August 6, 2015

1. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road outside Clearlake

2. Cassandra Raffaeilli with family

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Cassandra Raffaeilli, Wildfire evacuee:

"We don't have anywhere else to go and my kids, I have like two young ones and with them not having a place to go to is really scary. I have stuff there that you can't replace that I couldn't get out, stuff that came from family members that are no longer alive, so just going back to that, it would be so scary, devastating and scary, I wouldn't know what to do."

4. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road outside Clearlake

5. Setups of Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, in her tent with her two dogs outside the local Moose lodge

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, speaking about being ready to go home:

"I don't like the dirt, and it's been really hard on the Chihuahuas because they are never out of the house, they hate it, they're so spoiled and you know they're just miserable because like I said, we never leave home."

7. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road outside Clearlake

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, speaking about how she feels knowing that people lost their homes on Double Eagle Ranch Road:

"I'm heartbroken. I am heartbroken. I talked to some people from Double Eagle and it was just heart wrenching. He said, I mean it's bad enough to lose your home, he goes, he said the animals and the forest, the trees are so beautiful there, he's all, I can't even imagine."

9. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road outside Clearlake

10. Fire trucks

11. Various of firefighters working to put out a hot spot with water and shovel

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 2072106

Residents who fled homes threatened by a massive Northern California wildfire are hoping to check on their possessions soon and find their houses still standing.

It's unclear when they will be able to go home, but evacuees such as Cassandra Raffaelli fear finding out their residences have burned.

The 107-square-mile blaze has destroyed 43 homes about 100 miles north of San Francisco and was 40 percent contained Thursday.

In one area, metal chairs, burned books and broken dishes sat in the piles of ashes.

At one home, a metal table and chair sat in the middle of the burned-out foundation with nothing else around them.

Authorities have ordered or urged 13,000 people to leave their homes.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 2072106

Residents who fled homes threatened by a massive Northern California wildfire are hoping to check on their possessions soon and find their houses still standing.

It's unclear when they will be able to go home, but evacuees such as Cassandra Raffaelli fear finding out their residences have burned.

The 107-square-mile blaze has destroyed 43 homes about 100 miles north of San Francisco and was 40 percent contained Thursday.

In one area, metal chairs, burned books and broken dishes sat in the piles of ashes.

At one home, a metal table and chair sat in the middle of the burned-out foundation with nothing else around them.

Authorities have ordered or urged 13,000 people to leave their homes.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake, California - 6 August 2015

1. SOUNDBITE (English) Cassandra Raffaeilli, Wildfire evacuee:

"We don't have anywhere else to go and my kids, I have like two young ones and with them not having a place to go to is really scary. I have stuff there that you can't replace that I couldn't get out, stuff that came from family members that are no longer alive, so just going back to that, it would be so scary, devastating and scary, I wouldn't know what to do."

2. Various of Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, in her tent with her two dogs outside the local Moose lodge

3. Burned out homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, speaking about being ready to go home:

"I don't like the dirt, and it's been really hard on the Chihuahuas because they are never out of the house, they hate it, they're so spoiled and you know they're just miserable because like I said, we never leave home. I'm heartbroken. I am heartbroken. I talked to some people from Double Eagle and it was just heart wrenching. He said, I mean it's bad enough to lose your home, he goes, he said the animals and the forest, the trees are so beautiful there, he's all, I can't even imagine."

5. Various of firefighters working to put out a hot spot with water and shovel

Cooler weather helped crews build a buffer on Monday between a raging Northern California wildfire and some of the thousands of homes it threatened as it tore through drought-withered brush that hadn't burned in years.

The fire, although contained in some areas and was not as extreme as over the weekend, was still creating "dangerous firefighting conditions," CalFire spokesman Brice Bennett said.

At least two dozen homes were destroyed over the past few days, and more than 13,000 people were urged to flee.

The fire roughly tripled in size over the weekend due to "the four-year drought California is experiencing," Bennett added.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake, California - 3 August 2015

1. Firefighters walking on highway with fire burning in background

2. Big flames burning on hillside from fire intentionally set by firefighters as a burn off

3. Flames burning on mountaintop with helicopter flying past

4. Firefighters watch fires burning on hillside

5. Big flames burning trees

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Brice Bennett, CalFire spokesman:

"Temperatures have given us a little bit of a reprieve, as well as the humidity has come up a little bit. But we're still within a window where we're seeing some very extreme fire behaviour. So ,yes we're seeing a little bit less fire behaviour than we did over the weekend, not as extreme, but still it is a very dangerous situation."

7. Big plumes of smoke from fires

8. Flames burning grass on hillside where fire jumped Highway 20 (the containment line)

9. Firefighters with hose spraying down flames

10. Firefighters clearing brush on burning hillside

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Brice Bennett, CalFire spokesman:

"So the fuels in there were very dense, all the brush was very, very dry, and the fire had a wind on it. So with those three factors all combined, we saw tremendous growth (over the weekend) - over 20,000 acres in five hours."

12. Fire burning dry grass and tree by side of road

13. Helicopter drops water onto burning grass

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Brice Bennett, CalFire spokesman:

"The fire growth that we're seeing is definitely due in part to the four-year drought California is experiencing. And that coupled with a little bit of wind and some of these canyons makes for very dangerous firefighting conditions."

15. Firefighter intentionally sets brush on fire

16. Flames burning next to road

17. Firefighter burns roadside brush

18. Helicopter refills water tank in pond

19. Smoke billowing from mountain

20. Firefighter stands on fire truck looking for flames

Fire spokesman Steve Kaufmann said winds on Wednesday afternoon could refuel fires burning on the ground in Clearlake, northern California.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling a wildfire in the region.

Firefighting officials said crews made progress with some help from light rain on Tuesday, getting the fire less than a quarter contained.

Cooler temperatures and higher humidity overnight also helped reduce the smoky blaze.

The fire has charred 275 square kilometres (106 square miles) and isn't expected to be largely contained until at least Monday.

Much of the fire on Wednesday morning was smouldering on the ground as firefighters positioned themselves around its perimeter in anticipation of possible flare-ups.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Since it started last Wednesday, more than 13,000 people were required or urged to leave their homes, vacation cabins and campsites.

Teams on Tuesday were able to build a buffer between the flames and some of the estimated 6,900 homes it threatens.

Despite the fire's growth, no additional homes were consumed outside the two dozen already destroyed.

The fire is by far the largest of 11 currently burning in northern California.

AP TELEVISION

Clearlake, California - 5 August 2015

1. Various of smouldering trees and burned earth

2. Various of fire trucks and firefighters' staging area

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, Captain and Public Information Officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

"We expect the temperatures to go up and we expect the humidity to decrease substantially, and that should dry out some of our vegetation fuel beds. So I do expect to see a little bit of increase in activity today."

4. Various of burned area, smouldering trees

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, Captain and Public Information Officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

"If we have another good day, I expect to see some (containment) numbers increase and I definitely expect to see some (containment) numbers increase if we're able to hold those containment lines with the winds that we're expecting today."

6. Various of fire trucks, firefighters hiking up a hillside to work on the containment line

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Kaufmann, Captain and Public Information Officer, Ventura County Fire Department:

"(There is) A lot of fire deep seeded that's just smouldering on the ground so what happens during the day, especially when the winds come up is those fires will start getting bigger and then we'll start seeing flames. And the last few days, except for yesterday, we would see little spot fires grow out of those ones because the winds would carry the embers. So we'll definitely have to see what today brings us."

8. Fire trucks

Firefighters in Clearlake, California, were trying to extinguish small fires - or spot fires - that were reigniting, due to conducive weather conditions on Wednesday.

They were using helicopters to drop water on the smouldering fires.

More than 3,000 firefighters are battling a wildfire in the area, by far the largest fire of 11 currently burning in northern California.

Clearlake, California - 5 August 2015

1. Various of helicopter dropping water

2. Smouldering fire

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Jason Shanley, firefighter from San Diego, California:

"That's what they're doing. The term is really called, 'Chasing Smokers', where you see things smoking, you want to put water on those because that's letting you know there's something still burning. There's still something that's wanting to burn. And what'll happen is that you'll loose whatever you've gotten so far if you're not careful ."

4. Various of helicopter and water being dropped

5. Various of firefighters

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Robert Delambert, firefighter from San Rafael, California:

"So we're patrolling the roadside, everything south of Highway 20. So, CHP (California Highway Patrol) can re-open the road. But what we're finding is that the relative humidity are coming down. The temperatures are aligning just right to where all of our embers are starting heat up again and are creating small little spot fires all along the roadside. So, our job is to clean it up, in order for the safety of the public in order to travel on the roadways."

7. Various of the landscape with smoke rising

Hundreds of people forced to flee their homes by a massive wildfire in northern California are anxious to check on their pets and possessions, but for now are stuck camping in cars and trailers, drinking coffee from Styrofoam cups and hoping their houses have not been reduced to ash.

Cassandra Raffaelli and others have been staying in the car park at Moose Lodge, a fraternal organisation that is serving food to evacuees.

She has been there since Sunday and doesn't know what she will find when she returns home to Spring Valley, a threatened town in a parched rural area 100 miles north of San Francisco.

The flames mowed down some properties and left others untouched near Clearlake, California, about 100 miles north of San Francisco.

Chairs, burned books and broken dishes sat in piles of ash, while burned-out cars dotted the rubble.

Forty-three homes have been destroyed and 13,000 people have been ordered or warned to evacuate as the blaze chewed through more than 107 square miles (227 square kilometres) of dry brush.

Despite the destruction, crews were gaining ground, getting the blaze close to halfway contained on Thursday after more than a week of erratic behaviour.

It is the largest of 23 fires statewide and takes up nearly a third of the 10,000 firefighters dispatched in drought-stricken California.

Clearlake, California � 6 August 2015

1. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road outside Clearlake

2. Cassandra Raffaeilli, fire evacuee, with family

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Cassandra Raffaeilli, fire evacuee:

"We don't have anywhere else to go and with my kids, I have like two young ones, and with them not having a place to go to is really scary. I have stuff there that you can't replace that I couldn't get out. Stuff that came from family members that are no longer alive. So just going back to that, it would be so scary, devastating and scary, I wouldn't know what to do."

4. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road

5. Various of Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, in her tent with her two dogs outside the local Moose lodge

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, speaking about being ready to go home:

"I don't like the dirt, and it's been really hard on the chihuahuas because they are never out of the house, they hate it, they're so spoiled and you know they're just miserable because, like I said, we never (usually) leave home."

7. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Roxann Wallace, fire evacuee, speaking about how she feels knowing that people lost their homes on Double Eagle Ranch Road:

"I'm heartbroken. I am heartbroken. I talked to some people from Double Eagle and it was just heart-wrenching. He said, I mean it's bad enough to lose your home, he goes, he said the animals and the forest, the trees are so beautiful there, he's all, I can't even imagine."

9. Various of burned homes off Double Eagle Ranch Road outside Clearlake

10. Fire trucks

11. Various of firefighters working to put out a hotspot with water and shovel