Fire seems to have become the curse of southern California.<br/> <br />This blaze engulfed a yard packed with wooden shipping pallets in an industrial area of San Bernadino.<br/> <br />The towering stacks of pallets erupted into massive bonfires as fire-fighers tried to tackle the flames from the tops of ladders.<br/> <br />Smaller spot fires started in nearby brush as winds whipped away smoke and embers.<br/> <br />It's a further headache for firefighters in Southern California where fierce wildfires are threatening thousands of homes north-west of Los Angeles.<br/> <br />They've been fanned by high winds and record temperatures which are finally easing.
