SANTA BARBARA: As many as 23,000 more people faced possible evacuation Saturday as firefighters struggled to get a grip on an out-of-control wildfire raging in southern California.California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency to help release resources to fight the blaze. At least 75 homes have been destroyed and 30,500 people evacuated from the up market town of Santa Barbara following a wind-whipped blaze that has forced firefighters onto the defensive.Authorities widened the scope of possible evacuation areas to include an additional 23,000 people, despite a lull in winds and increased humidity that gave a boost to the firefighting effort later Friday. The rapidly spreading wildfire left vast clouds of smoke across the region following a dramatic escalation overnight that had sent the flames roaring toward the center of the city.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
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