daunting conditions for the 10,000 firefighters battling the fires. a u.s. forest service fire fighter from south dakota was killed while working a fire. the married father of two, scouting ways to attack burning fire when he became trapped by flames. as the the fire ravages anything in its path. >> it looked like a bomb had went off over here. it's scary. >> reporter: the largest blaze, the rocky fire burned 60,000 acres in three counties north of wine country. >> there are firefighters that have 20 25 30 years on the job, that have never seen fire behavior like we have seen the last couple days here on the rocky fire. >> reporter: the reason fire officials say four years of drought and 100 d heat have created conditions perfect for explosive growth. so far two dozen homes have been destroyed. governor jerry brown declaring a state of emergency and evacuations have been ordered for more than 13,000 californians.