According to news reports, more than 426,000 acres have been charred by the chain of wildfires, fueled by Santa Ana winds that earlier gusted up to 100 mph in some places but are now in the 25 to 35 mph range. The winds, which are seriously hampering firefighting operations, are projected to diminish after Wednesday.

More than 1,500 homes have been destroyed and nearly 1 million people displaced in the Southern California area. Five people have been killed and more than 70 injured, including 34 firefighters. President Bush signed a major disaster declaration for the area Oct. 24, speeding relief aid, and he is expected to visit the region on Thursday.

Dwight Simpson, director of missions for the San Diego Baptist Association, told Baptist Press one of the needs that concerns him most is the evacuation of two ranches used by the association's Set Free ministry.

The drug and alcohol rehab program helps people who have been on the street because of their behaviors, and the two ranches in the El Cajon area were in the path of one of the fires, he said.

"We take them out to the ranches and give them 90 days of beans and rice and Jesus Christ," Simpson explained. "Eventually, as they've gone through that, they come back in through the hotel in El Cajon, where we begin repatriating them and getting them equipped for job skills and that sort of thing."

But now all 400 of the ranch residents, including 100 children, are seeking shelter at the hotel run by Set Free in El Cajon, Simpson said, and they desperately need meals.

"They've been going over to the food bank and getting bread and strawberries and salad greens, which is what they can get for nothing," Simpson said. "But they sent out a request for milk, eggs, meat or money to help purchase that to feed these 400 people three times a day for the next while.

"I'm going to go out and take them a check from the association to help them for the next day or two, but we could sure use some help if there's anybody out there that could send along a little something to help with buying the food to feed the 400 folks there at the hotel in El Cajon," he said.

The contact number for the San Diego association is 619-275-2550.