Calif. firefighters battle more than 1,400 blazes

By MARCUS WOHLSEN

More than a thousand wildfires -- including a massive, stubborn blaze in the Big Sur region -- were burning early Monday in Northern California and there was no relief in sight for weary firefighters.

Fire crews inched closer to getting some of the largest of 1,420 blazes surrounded, according to the state Office of Emergency Services. Some 364,600 acres -- or almost 570 square miles -- have burned.

But a "red flag warning" -- meaning the most extreme fire danger -- was still in effect for Northern California until 8 a.m. EDT Monday. And the weather in the coming days and months isn't expected to help efforts.

Evacuation orders were lifted Sunday morning for residents of Tajique in central New Mexico, where a blaze has destroyed six homes. The fire, sparked by lightning June 23, was more than 60 percent contained.

In Guffey, Colo., about 40 miles west of Colorado Springs, most of the 100 residents who fled a 1,115-acre lightning-started wildfire were allowed back home Sunday. Final evacuation orders were expected to be lifted Monday morning.