Some 180 wildfires raged over a massive section of Western Canada's British Columbia yesterday, prompting the evacuation of 3,000 households and the province's first state of emergency in 14 years.

The blazes were scattered across hundreds of kilometers of the interior portion of the province, burning through bone-dry forests used for logging and rolling grasslands that are home to ranches. High temperatures and winds complicated firefighting efforts.

"The weather situation is not favorable," said John Rustad, provincial minister in charge of firefighting operations.

"There is very aggressive fire behavior that makes it very difficult to directly attack."

The spate of wildfires began on Friday, when 138 new fires were reported, most of them sparked by lightning in dry electrical storms.

No injuries or deaths were reported. Provincial officials said they did not know how much damage had been caused, though evacuees said they had left behind farm animals and witnessed destruction of homes and other buildings.

Chalky red fire retardant dust was splashed on some vehicles that passed through areas that were sprayed with the substance from "water bomber" planes used to fight the fire.

Yesterday, Canada's federal government offered to help British Columbia respond to the fast-spreading wildfires, though provincial authorities said they may have enough resources already.

Mr Rustad said that he expected about 260 personnel from other jurisdictions in Canada to support a team of more than 1,600 people helping respond to the fire.

"We are bringing a tremendous amount of resources to bear," he said, noting that their main priority was "to keep people safe."

British Columbia last declared a state of emergency in August 2003, which was also to deal with wildfires.

Evacuations in California as emergency services battle wildfires

Around 3,000 firefighters in California battled major wildfires after the end of a five-year drought across the state, as it was gripped by a record-breaking heatwave.

A wildfire in the Sierra Nevada foothills north of Sacramento was only 2% contained by early yesterday evening and had destroyed 10 homes, scorching 2,000 acres of forest and sparking evacuations and road closures.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire) said five residents and a firefighter had sustained minor injuries.

Meanwhile a blaze that forced evacuations in San Luis Obispo County tripled in size from yesterday morning to 19,000 acres by the evening. Fanned by hot, dry winds, it was just 10% contained, CalFire said.

Some 17 wildfires in various states of containment were burning in California yesterday, from the Six Rivers National Forest in the north to the San Bernardino Forest east of Los Angeles.

An excessive heat warning has been extended until 11.00 pm local time for much of southern California, with temperature records being broken across the region.

Downtown Los Angeles tied the 1954 record of 36C while the city's northwestern suburb of Woodland Hills reached a high of 42.7C, breaking the record of 42.2C set in 2006.

"Dangerous and potentially life-threatening heat is expected through (today), when high temperatures between 100 and 110 degrees are expected for many interior sections of southwest California," the National Weather Service said in a statement.

The weather service attributed the heat wave to a "strong upper-level high-pressure system centered over the desert southwest.

"Hot temperatures will create a dangerous situation in which there is an increased threat of heat-related illnesses. The extended heat wave will also bring elevated fire weather conditions through the weekend," said the NWS.

California Governor Jerry Brown in April declared the official end of the state's drought that lasted more than five years.

But he kept in place water reporting requirements, as well as bans on practices like watering during or following rainfall and hosing off sidewalks.