Californians reflect after fleeing homes as fire came close

VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — They ran for their lives by the thousands when the devastating wildfires raced across a huge swath of brush-covered Southern California hillsides, and they survived even if their homes didn't. Here are some stories of evacuees.

___

Steve Andruszkewicz and his wife used a garden hose to spray palm trees to keep them from burning as glowing embers whirled in the wind and flames raced down a hillside across the street from their beachside home early Thursday.

He said they would evacuate for the second time this week from tiny Faria Beach, where crews scrambled to protect homes nestled along the shore northwest of Los Angeles.