Oct. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Firefighters in Southern California made inroads against wildfires that forced the evacuations of as many as 1 million people, allowing some children to return to school as winds that fanned the flames abated.

San Diego's Poway School District will resume classes on Oct. 29 for its 33,000 students after fires in the past week left about 300 children and 10 teachers without their homes.

The National Weather Service forecast light winds and showers covering the fire-ravaged area with a trace of rain, creating more favorable conditions for fighting fires. The winds will gust to 20 miles per hour (32 kilometers) tomorrow as the skies remain cloudy. The Santa Ana winds began easing on Oct. 25 after sometimes reaching hurricane force, spreading flames and preventing aircraft from dumping water or fire retardants.

``Since the Santa Ana winds stopped blowing and we started to see that offshore flow come in, firefighters have been able to aggressively attack,'' CalFire Chief Dave Hillman said yesterday.

Residents in many areas returned home from evacuation centers. San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders told the National Football League that Qualcomm Stadium, where as many as 10,000 people took refuge during the week, will be available for the Chargers game against the Houston Texans tomorrow, the team said on its Web site.

Presidential Praise

President George W. Bush, whose administration was criticized after its slow response to Hurricane Katrina victims in New Orleans in 2006, said today he was ``impressed'' by the performance of first responders to the wildfires in California, and vowed continued help.

``State and local authorities in California were well prepared for this crisis, and they responded quickly and effectively,'' Bush said in his weekly radio address.

Wildfires caused seven deaths, including four bodies of probable illegal immigrants were found on a smuggling trail a mile north of the Mexican border, said San Diego County Sheriff Sergeant Mike Radovich. About 64 people have been injured.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said Southern California's economy ``suffered a major body blow.''

Disaster's Costs

The disaster may cost as much as $2.5 billion, including $650 million for structures and the rest for cars, furniture and other household goods, Merrill Lynch & Co. economist David Rosenberg said in an Oct. 25 report. This could be the second most-expensive fire in recent U.S. history, after a 1991 northern California blaze that cost $2.6 billion, he said.

The fires, nine of which have continued to spread while 14 are fully encircled, destroyed more than 1,760 homes and 338 commercial buildings and scorched more than 500,000 acres since erupting Oct. 21. About 20,900 homes are still threatened.

The largest fire, called Witch, may not be surrounded until tomorrow and may be fully extinguished by Nov. 5, Radovich said. The northern San Diego County fire has burned 197,990 acres and destroyed 1,061 homes.

The next-largest, the Harris fire, which is also in San Diego County, may be contained by Oct. 31 and under full control by Nov. 4, he said. It is 50 percent contained and has charred 111 homes and 85,000 acres.

Officials blamed arson for the Santiago fire that destroyed 14 homes, blackened 27,000 acres and injured five firefighters in northeastern Orange County.

A $250,000 reward is offered for information leading to an arrest. A search is under way for a 1998-2004 white Ford F-150 pickup truck with a standard cab and chrome tubular running boards that was seen on Santiago Canyon Road at 6 p.m. Oct. 21.

To contact the reporter on this story: Peter J. Brennan in Los Angeles at pbrennan3@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 27, 2007 17:45 EDT