California fire smoke seen from space

A state-wide emergency is in place following two devastating fires in California.

Thousands of residents near the wealthy Brentwood neighbourhood of Los Angeles have been told to evacuate because of a wildfire that began early on Monday.

Further north, a larger fire in Sonoma County has forced 180,000 people from their homes. The Kincade fire outside San Francisco started last Wednesday and has burned through 50,000 acres of land, fanned by the winds.

Read more: California faces huge power cuts as wildfires rage