PALM BAY, Fla. -- Gov. Charlie Crist declared a state of emergency Monday as dry, windy weather fueled several wildfires on Florida's central Atlantic coast, damaging more than 50 homes.

Hundreds of residents were under evacuation orders and firefighters from around the state were called to assist. In Palm Bay, firefighters from the small city of 100,000 residents spent 48 hours battling erratic flames that damaged roughly 50 homes.

The Palm Bay fires claimed 3,500 acres and burned into the night.

Bayside High and Westside Elementary schools in southern Brevard County were evacuated Monday afternoon.

A helicopter flew overhead, dumping huge buckets of water over the flames and several fire engines were located at the schools.

All Palm Bay public schools will be closed on Tuesday.

"Every time I turn around another house is on fire. We don't have enough resources on our own to do a job like this," said Palm Bay spokeswoman Yvonne Martinez.

She said the residents refusing to comply with the voluntary evacuations are being asked to give firefighters the names of their next of kin so that person could be notified in that case a tragedy took place.

In nearby Malabar about 3,000 acres burned and four homes were destroyed.

About 80 miles north in Daytona Beach, an 800-acre fire forced an evacuation order for about 500 homes, but residents were allowed to return Monday evening.

No structures there were reported damaged, though officials warned embers could fly more than a mile from the blaze and spark new hot spots.

A Palm Bay firefighter was taken to a hospital and held overnight for precaution but seems to be fine, authorities said. A Daytona Beach firefighter was also treated at the scene for minor injures.

Hundreds of firefighters worked the blazes, bulldozing highly flammable brush and vegetation and leaving behind less flammable dirt to keep the fires from advancing. A Division of Forestry helicopter being used in Daytona was pulled off Monday afternoon and sent to help with the burgeoning Malabar blaze.

The state of emergency allows Florida to use federal funds and the National Guard. The declaration also brings local emergency workers under state control and allows Florida to call on other states for help, if necessary.

In Malabar, Butch Vanfleet, 59, tried to contain the massive fire with a garden hose before the flames engulfed his home.

Vanfleet said he built the house in 1980, and his 26-year-old son and wife were inside Sunday evening when the fire came to their doorstep.

All that stood Monday was the chimney and a stone wall.

Vanfleet said he would rebuild.

"It's devastation," he said. "All you see is nothing but ash in between the palm trees and the palmetto. There's no grass. The fire just came so quickly, we barely got out of there."

The Florida Highway Patrol shut down a 7-mile stretch of Interstate 95 in Brevard County around rush hour Monday. U.S. Highway 1 was also closed in that area, and it was not known when it will reopen, FHP spokeswoman Kim Miller said.

"The fires have picked up in Malabar so it's just heavy, thick black smoke and it's right at driver level," Miller said.

Arsonist Sought

Palm Bay police said at least nine brush fires were intentionally set on Sunday, WKMG-TV reported.

An eyewitness saw someone in a car drop something into an open field, and the fire started shortly afterward, said Ernie Dieble, an arson investigator with the Palm Bay Police Department.

"When we started today, we had a total of nine fires that we believe were deliberately set that were started yesterday. We still believe that to be the case. We're getting information on potential suspects. Our arson investigators are out, actively following those leads," Martinez said.

A $10,000 reward was offered for information on the arsonist.

Anyone with information concerning the fires is urged to call the Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS.

30-Foot Flames Spotted

In Cocoa, 30-foot-high flames threatened more than 100 homes during a 250-acre fire, prompting several evacuations.

"I got knots in my stomach," fire victim Pam Hales said. "My daughter cooked Mother's Day dinner and we have not been able to eat it. We tried to eat, but nobody could eat."

Several roads were closed in Brevard County.

State Road 524 from Cox Road to Friday Road in Cocoa remains closed. And Cox Road is closed between Pine Cone and state Road 524.

Several homes were evacuated Sunday but residents were allowed back into their homes Monday.

Daytona Beach Fire 55 Percent Contained

In Daytona Beach, a 5-mile stretch of LPGA Boulevard was shut down because the fire was too close to the road. Investigators still aren't sure how the fire started.

Ray Ademski, a 68-year-old retiree, left his Daytona Beach home with his wife and their important papers when he saw columns of smoke Sunday night around the subdivision. He hosed down the roof and turned on the sprinklers in his yard before the couple left for a hotel.

"I could feel the heat from both sides," said Ademski, who returned by bicycle Monday to survey the damage. "The smoke was going straight into my eyes. It was terrible."

The fire was about 55 percent contained, but high winds and low humidity would continue to hamper efforts, said Timber Weller, a fire mitigation specialist for the Florida Division of Forestry.

"The risk of this fire breaking out is very high, so the crews are continuing to work very hard," Weller said. "By no means is this fire safe."

Firefighters also contained two smaller blazes near Cocoa that damaged four homes and two commercial structures, officials said.

In southwest Florida, authorities closed a stretch of State Road 776 near Charlotte County Sports Park because of a brush fire.

The LPGA Tour also closed its headquarters in Daytona Beach because of the fires.

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