California brush fires force evacuations and tens of thousands of power shutoffs

Hot, windy weather stokes fires in southern California as utilities shut off power to 150,000 customers as precaution

Several brush fires stoked by hot, windy weather forced evacuations in southern California, and tens of thousands of people woke up in the dark after their electricity was turned off.

A rapidly spreading blaze in Malibu, west of Los Angeles, prompted evacuation orders and warnings for a large swathe of the Santa Monica Mountains. Firefighters also worked to contain fires in the city of Azusa, north of LA, and Camp Pendleton, the large military base north of San Diego.