A wildfire which has scorched 76 square miles near the Georgia-Florida state line could keep burning for the next six months, officials said.

US firefighters battled huge blazes early today, including one that burned homes and forced residents and visitors on Santa Catalina Island to flee the resort off the southern California coast.

Extreme weather made life miserable from one end of the United States to the other, with people forced out of their homes by wildfires and major flooding.