Florida Fights To Control Wildfires

Gov. Jeb Bush has declared a state of emergency and called in the Florida National Guard to help fight about 50 active wildfires throughout the water-parched state. The fires have burned thousands of acres, destroyed three homes and shut down stretches of highway.

In an impromptu service announcement Tuesday, the governor and President George W. Bush, the governor's brother, reminded Florida residents not to throw out cigarette butts with wildfires blazing across the state.

The brothers spoke to reporters after being briefed by fire officials in a community near Tampa.

"Obviously the people need to be real careful, careful about starting fires, be careful about not throwing used cigarettes out," the president said. "They need to be mindful that these are dangerous conditions."

His brother also noted that tossing a cigarette butt is a felony in the state of Florida.

"We want to make sure that no fires are started because of human error or negligence or malfeasance," the governor said.

Rain was expected to help some areas Tuesday afternoon, but officials worried that lightning could spark more blazes.

"We still have significant wildfire conditions and need a tremendous amount of rain to get back to normal levels," New Smyrna Beach spokeswoman Shannon Lewis said Tuesday.

The governor declared a state of emergency Monday night, deploying aviation units from the Florida National Guard. He also met with some of the 155 firefighters working to contain a fire in New Smyrna Beach that has consumed about 1,300 acres since Sunday and destroyed three homes.

"We are a tinder box right now," Bush said. "We had a little bit of rain, but not enough to give people assurances that we are not going to have more fires."

In New Smyrna Beach, about 1,000 residents were ordered to evacuate Sunday as the fire approached.

Parts of I-95 have been closed intermittently for several days because of smoke that blanketed highways and contributed to collisions that killed four people. The highway was reopened early Tuesday in Brevard and Volusia counties, Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Kim Miller said.

"The smoke has been so thick you can't even see the hood or your car," reports CBS News correspondent Peter King.

More than 2,200 wildfires have burned over 44,000 acres in Florida since Jan. 1, according to the state Division of Forestry.

"These fires are consuming everything," said Jim Brenner, the division's fire management administrator. "And it's not over by any stretch of the imagination."