California National Guard Troops Aid Fire Fight

As temperatures approached 110 degrees in parts of California during the second week of July, more than 330 fires were active and some 1,400 had been contained, according to the California Department of Forestry.

More than 600,000 acres statewide were charred and 40 homes destroyed as fires swept through portions of the state.

Fires forced evacuations and closed roadways, including Highway 1 in the treasured Big Sur area along the central coast. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ordered the National Guard to deploy ground forces for the first time in three decades to help depleted and weary fire crews battle blazes throughout the state.