Thursday, May 7, 2009
Photo: Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times Fire crews took advantage of the calmer winds today and aggressively attacked that Santa Barbara wildfire on the ground and from the air. Tonight, the number of acres scorched was up from 13-hundred to 27-hundred. Many homes were saved, but 75 were damaged or destroyed by the flames. Also, more than 13-thousand people have been evacuated. Earlier in the day, we got an update on […]
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Photo: Lawrence K. Ho/ Los Angeles Times Strong winds whipped that wildfire in the foothills of Santa Barbara into a firestorm late today. The powerful winds, known as sundowners, reached 50 miles an hour and higher in some areas. Eight thousand people were evacuated, at least 500 acres charred, and at least 20 homes have burned to the ground. Photo: Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times […]
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Photo: FLLewis/A Writer’s Groove –Burbank The Southern California fire season kicked off early with a wildfire that erupted in the Santa Barbara foothills yesterday. The battle is still going on today with water-dropping aircraft and hand crews on the ground. More than a thousand homes have been evacuated and nearly 200 acres burned. Meanwhile here in Burbank, firefighters are keeping a close eye on […]
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
While some folks scramble to find their rarely used umbrellas today, others in the Southland are either sandbagging or shoring up their properties in the areas charred by the recent wildfires. The threat of mudslides is so serious in Orange County, volunteer evacuations are recommended in the most fire-ravaged canyon areas of Yorba Linda. Earlier this month, wind-whipped wildfires destroyed hundreds of homes and […]
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times — A Montecito home is destroyed by last Thursday’s wildfire. Late today, officials announced last week’s destructive wildfire in Santa Barbara County was caused by a bonfire in the Tea House Garden area above the upscale enclave, Montecito. Some young people reportedly created the bonfire and thought they had put it out before they left. Sundowner winds of 70 […]
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Barack Obama greets the crowd at his victory rally in Chicago on election night. President-elect Barack Obama is not in charge yet, but that has not stopped him from showing compassion and exerting his influence. At a news conference late yesterday, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced he had received a phone call from President-elect Obama, “.. he and […]
Monday, November 17, 2008
Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times In the fire-damaged Oakridge Mobile Home Park hundreds of homes were destroyed, but some survived. “We have found no human remains at this point.” That was the conclusion today from a Los Angeles County Coroner official about the search for victims at the fire-ravaged Oakridge Mobile Home Park in Sylmar. L.A. County Coroner spokesman Ed […]
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times A firefighting plane circles the flames and smoke in Yorba Linda The major battle against these destructive wildfires shifted to Orange and San Bernardino Counties today where the flames are the most threatening. Fire crews from Los Angeles County, Santa Barbara County, and as far away as San Mateo in Northern California are joining that fight. Since […]
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times A firefighter battles to save a mobile home in Sylmar. The Burbank foothills in the San Fernando Valley have not been touched by the flames of the rampaging Sylmar wildfire, but my community is still affected. A short time ago, I got an e-mail alert from Burbank City Council Member, Marsha Ramos, about electrical power concerns. […]