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Residents burned out of their fashionable hillside homes must have wished it was all a bad dream, that there would be no memories as they returned to the remains of what had once been comfortable shelters. But once the flames had died away late this afternoon, freeways were

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reopened and some firemen went home to clean their equipment, and the shocked homeless owners drifted back. Among those who joined the survey of damage was Assemblyman Don Mulford, who was in Sacramento this morning when the massive blaze broke out. Would the scope of the damage be

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enough to indicate that you would go to Sacramento and ask for disaster declaration. I've already done that. I met with people from the Governor's office and the disaster office this morning. They're on a standby basis assessing the damage. They're to inform me tonight or tomorrow morning if

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in their judgment it should be triggered. That that groundwork has already been laid. I think there's a very good possibility that it was started by an arsonist. I understand that there was a fire just recently, uh, as recently as last week that was started by arson

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and in the same area. This is correct, yes, and they've had, I don't know how many this year, but it's just been lots and lots of fires in the park district itself. Unfortunately this one hit the day when we had a big wind blowing right into

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Oakland and we just couldn't stop it. Other fire and police authorities have confirmed suspicions of arson but say they don't have a suspect, although numerous questionable people were seen in the area. For police, it is a matter of protecting the homes from looters. For the firemen,

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it is an all night, all day job facing them of hitting each hot spot, making sure they are all out. For those left homeless, the work has just begun. They will testify to the glaring fact that it was the most destructive fire in 50 years.

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Tonight they will stay with friends, relatives, or at the Claremont Hotel. Wednesday morning they will begin to patch together, rebuild - if they can. For Eyewitness News, Steve Huss reporting.