 |
|
A chimney is left standing after a home burned during the Station Fire are pictured in the Big Tujunga canyon area of Los Angeles, California August 30, 2009. The heat-driven fire nearly doubled in size overnight and has now burned 35,000 acres (14,000 hectares) of thick, bone-dry brush in the mountains above five towns, a 10-mile (16 km) stretch from La Crescenta to Pasadena, the California Fire Department said.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- Amid high
temperatures, a wildfire was moving northwest in Los Angeles on Sunday after
having burned more than 35,000 acres (about 14,175 hectares), authorities said.
About 2,000 firefighters were deployed to prevent the
Station Fire from destroying more homes, the Los Angeles County Fire Department
(LACFD) said.
 |
|
A motorcycle burns during the Station
Fire in the Big Tujunga area of Los Angeles, California August 29, 2009.
(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
The firefighters were assisted by water- and
fire-retardant-dropping helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, including a DC-10
jumbo jet, which can dump up to 12,000 gallons of fire retardant in eight
seconds, according to the department.
The fire is about 5 percent contained, with full
containment not expected until Sept. 8, said the department. How the fire
started has not been established.
Three homes and about 30 cabins in the Angeles
National Forest have been destroyed, with 10,000 other foothill homes and some
2,000 commercial buildings threatened, firefighters said.
 |
|
A firefighter watches a water drop at
the Station Fire in Angeles National Forest above the La Canada Flintridge
area of Los Angeles, California August 28,2009. (Xinhua/Reuters
Photo)
Photo
Gallery>>> |
Three civilians have been hurt -- two in the Big
Tujunga Canyon area and one off Highway 2 near Mount Wilson.
With temperatures expected to reach the mid- to high
90s Fahreinheit on Sunday in the fire areas, officials said they were expecting
extreme fire conditions, mirroring Saturday's, when flames leapt as high as 80
feet and spread at a rate of about 2.5 miles (four kilometers) an hour.
The fire is also threatening the Santa Clarita
Valley, broadcast facilities on Mount Wilson and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
in La Canada Flintridge.
 |
|
Flames from the Station Fire are seen
above the NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in La Canada, California
August 28, 2009. Thousands of residents were evacuated from million-dollar
homes in exclusive Los Angeles communities as four wildfires burned on
Friday in the mountains and coastal areas around the
city. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
The Station Fire broke out Wednesday afternoon near a
ranger station and the Angeles Crest Highway north of La Canada Flintridge and
has prompted evacuation orders for as many as 4,000 homes.
A
mushroom-shaped cloud of smoke and vapor that could be seen across the Los
Angeles Basin rose to about 20,000 feet over the mountains Saturday, as the fire
grew on all fronts, driven primarily by dry conditions and high heat.
The air quality in some cities in the Los Angeles
area was deemed unhealthful by the regional air-quality agency.
Touring the command post Sunday morning, California
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said the government was closely monitoring the
developments and would try every means possible to contain the fire which was
"very challenging."
The governor has declared an emergency in Los Angeles
County.
LACFD Capt. Bill Sanchez said fire crews needed to
cut about 110 miles (176 kilometers) of fire line to stop the fire's trajectory.
He said the wind changed direction overnight,
particularly in the mountainous areas of the Angeles National Forest, to a
down-canyon wind, which pushed it toward some residential areas.
"Due to the volatility at the top of some of the areas, it is going to be really challenging," Sanchez said. "We have a lot of work ahead of us. There is quite a bit of instability at the top of the fire."
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
[11] [12] [13]
