Land here is limited in all directions: by the Mexican border to the south, the ocean to the west, the Marine base at Camp Pendleton to the north, and the Cleveland National Forest east of the city.

A huge smoke cloud from the fire meanwhile was billowing over the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest about 185 miles (300 kilometers) northeast of Phoenix, near the Arizona-New Mexico border.

Last November German and Polish fans fought in a forest close to the border town of Frankfurt an der Oder after using the Internet to arrange the meeting. There were several arrests.