Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush viewed some of the 700 square miles of scorched California landscape from the air today and promised residents of the area he would put the full resources of the federal government at their disposal.

The fires have caused at least three deaths, destroyed almost 3,000 homes and businesses and may cost insurers $1.6 billion. Firefighters got a welcome break today as winds fueling the blazes died down, and the forecast called for ocean breezes.

``There's no question there's been a lot of people suffering,'' Bush said in Escondido, in northern San Diego County, after getting a briefing on firefighting and relief efforts with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and other officials. The president said he came to the state ``to let you know we're not going to forget you in Washington, D.C.''

Given the criticism of his administration's response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the South Asian tsunami in 2004, the White House this week has been touting the quick engagement of federal emergency operations, including efforts by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Bush dismissed a question about how the federal reaction changed since Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast.

``There's all kinds of time for historians to compare this response to that response,'' Bush said as he and Schwarzenegger toured the Rancho Bernardo area, north of San Diego.

`Quick Action'

Schwarzenegger went out of his way to praise the president and the ``quick action'' of federal authorities.

``I think we've learned a lot from the past mistakes,'' he said later after the briefing in Escondido, noting that the first federal emergency declaration came within 24 hours.

The California Republican thanked Bush for his ``tremendous support and his immediate help,'' adding, ``The president jumped into action right away.''

Since Katrina, when the president and his team were widely criticized for failing to act quickly enough, the administration revamped the leadership of FEMA, and Bush has juggled his schedule to get to disaster scenes within days. He canceled a planned trip to St. Louis today for a speech on the budget and a political event to fly to California.

``Image can be as important as substance in politics,'' said Graham Wilson, a professor of political science at Boston University. ``Katrina made the administration seem uncaring as well as incompetent.''

Different Image

While the fires may be dying down, the president is communicating concern, eager to ``avoid the impression of drift, aloofness and incompetence that characterized'' the response to the hurricane, Wilson said. ``The administration could not afford to come across as uncaring and incompetent in the face of another disaster.''

In addition to briefings with state, local and federal officials, Bush took a walking tour of the Rancho Bernardo neighborhood, where a swath of houses was destroyed by the fire.

``I'm here really to make sure the federal effort works hand in glove with local government,'' he said.

Since the California fires reached a crisis stage, the White House has been on a virtual around-the-clock watch.

Bush and Schwarzenegger stayed in close contact, and when the governor called at about 2:30 a.m. Washington time on Oct. 23 to request a presidential declaration of an emergency, it was issued barely an hour later.

Later that day, the president dispatched Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and FEMA Director David Paulison to Southern California.

Disaster Declaration

Bush declared the wildfires a ``major disaster'' yesterday, opening the way for families affected to claim federal funds. The government also has made available the full catalog of federal aid, equipment and fire-fighting help for the Southern California region.

It makes aid available to people in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, including grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and programs to help people and business owners recover, a White House statement said.

In addition, 2,492 National Guard personnel are actively involved in fighting the fires, with another 17,295 and 550 active-duty Marines on stand-by for potential deployment, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. Another 214 active duty military personnel also are assisting, and military aircraft are flying missions.

``Over the past three days we've seen a disaster response operating exactly the way it's supposed to be,'' Frances Townsend, the president's homeland security adviser, told reporters aboard Air Force One as Bush flew to San Diego.

She called it ``a very good example of what we consider a strengthened and rebuilt new FEMA, leaning forward, pro-active and ready to respond to what state and local officials need.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Edwin Chen in Escondido, California, at echen32@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: October 25, 2007 17:17 EDT