Post by Bennett D. Ebberly on Oct 27, 2003 17:20:44 GMT -5
Fires Destroy More Than 825 Homes
5AM PST, Oct. 27, 2003
By Seth Hettena, Associated Press Writer
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Wildfires driven by hot Santa Ana wind flared into gigantic waves of flame that devoured entire neighborhoods, choking the sky over Southern California with smoke and ash Monday and killing at least 13 people in the state`s deadliest outbreak of fires in more than a decade.
From the Mexican border to the suburbs north of Los Angeles, large sections of the region were under siege Monday by six major fires and several smaller blazes. More than 825 homes had been destroyed. The death toll was the worst in the state since the 1991 fire in the Oakland hills of Alameda County that killed 25 and destroyed more than 3,200 homes and apartments.
Airline travel was disrupted, major highways were blocked and some schools were closed. A professional football game was shifted to Arizona.
The blazes triggered a harrowing flight to safety for thousands of residents, many of whom had little time to collect cherished possessions before escaping.
``I was grabbing wet towels. Fire was at our feet. It was blazing over our heads and burning everywhere,`` said Lisza Pontes, 43, recounting her Sunday morning escape from a fire in San Diego County.
Million-dollar homes disappeared in flames almost as fast as canyon brush in San Diego`s Scripps Ranch area. In San Bernardino County, a blaze called the Old Fire, which had destroyed more than 400 homes, torched 25 more when it jumped a road and moved into the heavily forested town of Crestline, fire information officer Candace Vialpando of the U.S. Forest Service said Monday.
The wind subsided for a time during the night but picked up again Monday morning in San Bernardino County, Vialpando said.
The Santa Ana wind season usually stretches from September through February, with October often the strongest. The area`s rainy season could start any time but heavier rain is not likely until January.
About 30,000 homes were endangered by the fires, which had consumed more than 330,000 acres, or 500 square miles - almost half the size of the state of Rhode Island - of dense, dry brush and trees. More than 7,000 firefighters battled the spreading flames.
A state of emergency was declared in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties.
Shortly before 6 a.m. Monday, an 80,000-acre blaze in suburban Simi Valley, 35 miles northwest of Los Angeles, jumped a highway and came within yards of several homes before the wind eased and firefighters began to get the upper hand. Schools in the city of 110,000 people were closed Monday because of the fire, which already had destroyed six homes.
All of the fatalities happened since Saturday. Nine people were killed by the so-called Cedar Fire in San Diego County, the state`s largest blaze at approximately 100,000 acres. About 260 homes, ranging from modest to expensive, were destroyed.
The San Diego County victims included two people who died inside their car as they apparently tried to escape the flames, which witnesses said moved so fast they didn`t get any warning.
That fire was started Saturday near the mountain town of Julian when a lost hunter set a signal fire, authorities said. The hunter may face charges.
Another fire near San Diego that started Sunday killed two people and destroyed 57 homes while burning about 15,000 acres, authorities said. It also prompted evacuations in northeastern Escondido.
Around the congested suburbs of San Bernardino, a city of about 200,000 some 50 miles east of Los Angeles, one flank of a nearly 80,000-acre fire burned through four towns while the other flank destroyed more than 450 homes. Two fires - the Old Fire and the Grand Prix - had merged on Sunday, creating a flame front 35 to 40 miles long.
Two men collapsed and died, one as he was evacuating his canyon home and the other as he watched his house burn, the San Bernardino County coroner said.
Authorities said they were seeking two men for investigation of arson and possibly murder in connection with the San Bernardino fires. Three looters were arrested, police said.
Another 80,000-acre fire, northwest of Los Angeles in Ventura County, threatened approximately 2,000 homes and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
Firefighters were spread thinly around threatened communities, focusing on saving what homes they could. The gusty wind prevented the air tanker drops of retardant and use of backfires that are key tactics of fire containment.
The area is vulnerable because drought and an infestation of bark beetles have killed millions of trees. And in some places, brush has not been trimmed by fire or man for decades.
Brandy DeBatte, 21, stayed at her Crestline home until the electricity went out and the smoke started to thicken.
``I got our animals. I got insurance papers. I didn`t want to be up there if the town was going to burn down,`` she said.
Hours later, she had second thoughts: ``I should have gotten more out, and I didn`t.``
Some of the evacuations ordered included Indian reservation casinos, California State University, San Bernardino, where fire burned two temporary classrooms and a temporary fitness center, and a state mental hospital.
About 1,100 prison inmates also were evacuated, and at least 200 juveniles were evacuated Sunday from two probation camps, said Ken Kondo, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Probation Department spokesman.
Fire also forced the evacuation of a Federal Aviation Administration control center in San Diego, disrupting air travel across the nation. Some airlines canceled flights into the region.
The National Football League moved Monday night`s football game between the Chargers and Miami Dolphins from Qualcomm Stadium, which is being used as an evacuation center, to Tempe, Ariz.
5AM PST, Oct. 27, 2003
By Seth Hettena, Associated Press Writer
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Wildfires driven by hot Santa Ana wind flared into gigantic waves of flame that devoured entire neighborhoods, choking the sky over Southern California with smoke and ash Monday and killing at least 13 people in the state`s deadliest outbreak of fires in more than a decade.
From the Mexican border to the suburbs north of Los Angeles, large sections of the region were under siege Monday by six major fires and several smaller blazes. More than 825 homes had been destroyed. The death toll was the worst in the state since the 1991 fire in the Oakland hills of Alameda County that killed 25 and destroyed more than 3,200 homes and apartments.
Airline travel was disrupted, major highways were blocked and some schools were closed. A professional football game was shifted to Arizona.
The blazes triggered a harrowing flight to safety for thousands of residents, many of whom had little time to collect cherished possessions before escaping.
``I was grabbing wet towels. Fire was at our feet. It was blazing over our heads and burning everywhere,`` said Lisza Pontes, 43, recounting her Sunday morning escape from a fire in San Diego County.
Million-dollar homes disappeared in flames almost as fast as canyon brush in San Diego`s Scripps Ranch area. In San Bernardino County, a blaze called the Old Fire, which had destroyed more than 400 homes, torched 25 more when it jumped a road and moved into the heavily forested town of Crestline, fire information officer Candace Vialpando of the U.S. Forest Service said Monday.
The wind subsided for a time during the night but picked up again Monday morning in San Bernardino County, Vialpando said.
The Santa Ana wind season usually stretches from September through February, with October often the strongest. The area`s rainy season could start any time but heavier rain is not likely until January.
About 30,000 homes were endangered by the fires, which had consumed more than 330,000 acres, or 500 square miles - almost half the size of the state of Rhode Island - of dense, dry brush and trees. More than 7,000 firefighters battled the spreading flames.
A state of emergency was declared in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties.
Shortly before 6 a.m. Monday, an 80,000-acre blaze in suburban Simi Valley, 35 miles northwest of Los Angeles, jumped a highway and came within yards of several homes before the wind eased and firefighters began to get the upper hand. Schools in the city of 110,000 people were closed Monday because of the fire, which already had destroyed six homes.
All of the fatalities happened since Saturday. Nine people were killed by the so-called Cedar Fire in San Diego County, the state`s largest blaze at approximately 100,000 acres. About 260 homes, ranging from modest to expensive, were destroyed.
The San Diego County victims included two people who died inside their car as they apparently tried to escape the flames, which witnesses said moved so fast they didn`t get any warning.
That fire was started Saturday near the mountain town of Julian when a lost hunter set a signal fire, authorities said. The hunter may face charges.
Another fire near San Diego that started Sunday killed two people and destroyed 57 homes while burning about 15,000 acres, authorities said. It also prompted evacuations in northeastern Escondido.
Around the congested suburbs of San Bernardino, a city of about 200,000 some 50 miles east of Los Angeles, one flank of a nearly 80,000-acre fire burned through four towns while the other flank destroyed more than 450 homes. Two fires - the Old Fire and the Grand Prix - had merged on Sunday, creating a flame front 35 to 40 miles long.
Two men collapsed and died, one as he was evacuating his canyon home and the other as he watched his house burn, the San Bernardino County coroner said.
Authorities said they were seeking two men for investigation of arson and possibly murder in connection with the San Bernardino fires. Three looters were arrested, police said.
Another 80,000-acre fire, northwest of Los Angeles in Ventura County, threatened approximately 2,000 homes and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
Firefighters were spread thinly around threatened communities, focusing on saving what homes they could. The gusty wind prevented the air tanker drops of retardant and use of backfires that are key tactics of fire containment.
The area is vulnerable because drought and an infestation of bark beetles have killed millions of trees. And in some places, brush has not been trimmed by fire or man for decades.
Brandy DeBatte, 21, stayed at her Crestline home until the electricity went out and the smoke started to thicken.
``I got our animals. I got insurance papers. I didn`t want to be up there if the town was going to burn down,`` she said.
Hours later, she had second thoughts: ``I should have gotten more out, and I didn`t.``
Some of the evacuations ordered included Indian reservation casinos, California State University, San Bernardino, where fire burned two temporary classrooms and a temporary fitness center, and a state mental hospital.
About 1,100 prison inmates also were evacuated, and at least 200 juveniles were evacuated Sunday from two probation camps, said Ken Kondo, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Probation Department spokesman.
Fire also forced the evacuation of a Federal Aviation Administration control center in San Diego, disrupting air travel across the nation. Some airlines canceled flights into the region.
The National Football League moved Monday night`s football game between the Chargers and Miami Dolphins from Qualcomm Stadium, which is being used as an evacuation center, to Tempe, Ariz.