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Crews made progress overnight against a Northern California wildfire that has grown to more than 4 1/2 square miles and forced the evacuation of hundreds of homes. The Wye Fire east of the community of Clearlake Oaks in Lake County was 25 percent contained early Monday morning. State fire officials say it is threatening 480 homes in Spring Valley and has already destroyed three structures. It was not immediately clear whether those were homes or outbuildings.

A surprise surge in gasoline prices is taking some of the fun out of summer. The national average for a gallon of gas at the pump has climbed to $3.67, a rise of 34 cents since July 1. An increase in crude oil prices and problems with refineries and pipelines in the West Coast and Midwest, including a fire in California, are mostly to blame.

The Anaheim City Council heard public comments for over three hours Wednesday from residents who want voting districts they say will increase Latino representation. But the council rejected the proposal on a 3-2 vote.

A cluster of earthquakes that began Tuesday night continued Wednesday in northern Orange County, keeping residents on edge but causing little significant damage. Photos emerged of bottles falling off a supermarket shelf in Anaheim Hills, but fire officials said they didn't get reports of anything more serious. At a news conference Wednesday morning, Kate Hutton of the U.S. Geological Survey at Caltech said there had been at least 30 quakes since last night, but only three could be felt by residents.

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) says it's too early to make changes in a mediation process for municipalities seeking to file for protection. Legislation that could have delayed some municipal bankruptcies has been tabled after being opposed by the mayors of California's largest cities, including Los Angeles' Antonio Villaraigosa.

Anaheim officers have killed five people since Jan. 1. Police say the shootings are intertwined with the rise in violent, gang-related crimes. The controversy over the fatal police shooting of an unarmed Anaheim man is part of a significant increase in both violent crime and officer-involved shootings in the city so far this year, according to records reviewed by The Times.

A massive fire that shut down Chevron Corp's large Richmond, California, refinery on Monday, was extinguished by the early hours of Tuesday, Chevron said, leaving residents and oil traders seeking answers to the hours-long blaze.

Marvin Hamlisch, the singularly productive and sensationally decorated composer of musicals like "A Chorus Line" and songs like "The Way We Were," died in Los Angeles on Monday after a brief illness.

A fire struck the core of Chevron Corp's large Richmond, California, refinery on Monday evening, sending flames and a column of smoke into the air and prompting authorities to order nearby residents indoors.

A woman disguised in scrubs was caught trying to steal a newborn girl from a Southern California hospital in a tote bag after sensors attached to the baby alerted employees, Garden Grove police said.