Southern California firefighters race against time, winds
Story highlights
- Wind gusts Thursday could reach 64 mph, forecasters say
- More than 100,000 acres have burned
Los Angeles (CNN)Every
day firefighters in Los Angeles receive a brush burning index report
that indicates the fire danger. If it's 165 or higher, that's extreme.
The number for Thursday is 296, the highest it has ever been, according to Los Angeles Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas.
Terrazas
and other officials in Southern California warned residents Wednesday
evening that a series of wildfires fueled by wicked Santa Ana winds and dangerously dry vegetation likely was going to get even worse in the next 24 hours.
"We
stand a fairly good chance of a very challenging night and day
(Thursday)," said Tim Chavez, a fire behavior analyst for CalFire, at a
news conference on the 90,000-acre Thomas Fire in Ventura County.
"There's a lot of potential for some large fire growth (for this fire)."
More
than 100,000 acres in Southern California have burned with little
containment. Overworked firefighters caught a little bit of a break
Wednesday when the winds eased somewhat, but the forecast for the next
three days was bad news on top of bad news.
The
winds will pick up, with gusts up to 64 mph, before they taper down
again. Humidity will be super dry -- less than 10%. Red flag warnings
will be in effect through Saturday night, 24 hours later than originally
predicted.
Latest developments
• Told to leave: Evacuations
in some of the area's most affluent neighborhoods near the Skirball
Fire affected 46,000 people, officials said. The fire was on the other
side of the highway from both the Skirball museum and the Getty museum, where the art was staying put.
• Freeway shutdown: The
475-acre Skirball Fire near the tony Bel-Air area of Los Angeles
startled morning commuters on Interstate 405. The busy freeway was shut
down over a 9-mile stretch for hours as the fire got close. "It was dark
until I saw a gigantic ball of orange," I-405 motorist Tiffany Lynette
Anderson wrote on Instagram,
where she posted a picture of fire raging beside the highway before it
was closed. "I could feel the heat on my windows," said Los Angeleno
Joy Newcomb, who also drove by the fire. The freeway has since reopened,
but some ramps remain closed.
Brandy Gillespie took this photo driving on I-405 early Wednesday near the Getty Center in Los Angeles.
• Curfew enacted:
On Tuesday, the city of Ventura declared a daily curfew, from 10 p.m.
to 5 a.m., to protect residents and prevent crime such as looting in
evacuation areas.
• Creek Fire in northern Los Angeles:
The second-largest blaze is the Creek Fire, having burned more than
12,000 acres in and near northern Los Angeles' Sylmar and Tujunga
neighborhoods since it began Tuesday morning. Seven firefighters
suffered injuries that aren't considered life-threatening.
• Masks suggested:
The smoke resulting from the Thomas fire is creating a "severe impact
on air quality and visibility," the Ventura County Fire Department said
on Twitter.
• School closures: More than 260 Los Angeles public and charter schools will be closed Thursday and Friday.
• Out-of-state help: About 300 engines are coming from fire departments in other states, Los Angeles County Fire Department Chief Daryl Osby said.
• Other fires: The Rye Fire near Santa Clarita in Los Angeles County grew to about 7,000 acres.
Smoky hazards
Los Angeles authorities ordered parts of the Bel-Air district near the fire to leave, but those are just a fraction of the evacuations that have been ordered in Southern California since Monday night.
Smoke collected even in
areas that weren't burning. Health officials warned people in the
heavily populated San Fernando Valley and other parts of the northern
Los Angeles area to limit their time outdoors.
A
video posted to Instagram shows a Los Angeles County Fire helicopter
maneuvering around heavy smoke to make a water drop on the Skirball
Fire.
The smoke from the fires
could be seen from the International Space Station. Astronaut Randy
Bresnik wrote in one tweet: "I was asked this evening if we can see the
SoCal fires from space. Yes Faith, unfortunately we can. May the Santa
Ana's die down soon. #Californiawildfire." In another post he thanked
the thousands of people fighting the fires.
More than 100 square miles big
The Thomas Fire spanned about 101 square miles in Ventura County, which sits just north and west of Los Angeles.
Officials there said they
couldn't give a precise number of homes destroyed, because flames in
burned neighborhoods still were too intense for examination. But
they had estimated about 150 buildings early Tuesday. The number will
increase once the focus shifts from firefighting and rescue to more
damage assessment, fire officials said.
On Wednesday, the fire grew significantly on the northern side of the blaze.
Airborne embers were irritating firefighters' eyes, said Rich Macklin, a Ventura County fire spokesman.
California
Gov. Jerry Brown declared an emergency for Ventura County, freeing
state resources such as the National Guard to support response efforts.
Flaming tumbleweeds shoot into the air
At his home on Solimar Beach in Ventura, Phil Lee was tired and nervous.
He had a restless night Tuesday into Wednesday after fire put on a startling show near his waterfront home.
There was a deep thicket of brush nearby that had survived a 2015 wildfire.
Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Fires leave an apartment complex leveled in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A firefighter sprays water at a burning house in the Lake View Terrace area of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Palm trees burn in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Ventura County firefighter Aaron Cohen rests between fighting fires in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A
man prepares to evacuate from his Santa Paula house on December 5. Tens
of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A man attempts to catch a horse that got loose during a wildfire in the Lake View Terrace area of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Shrubs burn near a home in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
James and Josie Ralstin carry belongings retrieved from their home in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Firefighters battle to put out a blaze engulfing homes in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
The Thomas Fire burns along a hillside near Santa Paula on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A
Los Angeles County Fire Department helicopter makes a water drop on
flames sweeping up a steep canyon wall, threatening homes on a ridge
line, after the Skirball wildfire swept through the Bel Air district on
Wednesday, December 6. The largest of the blazes, the Thomas fire,
started north of Santa Paula before spreading to Ventura, a coastal
city just north of Los Angeles. Powerful Santa Ana winds and extremely
dry conditions are fueling the wildfires in what has been a devastating
year for fires in California.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A firefighter mops up at a home consumed by a wildfire in the Bel Air district of Los Angeles on December 6.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Flames from the Thomas fire burn above a truck on Highway 101 north of Ventura.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Consumed vehicles in Ventura on Tuesday, December 5, as wildfires rage in Southern California.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Smoke billows from a burning house in Los Angeles as the Creek Fire moves through the area December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
The Thomas Fire spews smoke in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
The Creek Fire burns on a hillside in the Shadow Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A firefighter battles the blaze in the Lake View Terrace area of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Antoine Hanna comforts his wife, Tammy, after firefighters save their home in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Fires leave an apartment complex leveled in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A firefighter sprays water at a burning house in the Lake View Terrace area of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Palm trees burn in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Ventura County firefighter Aaron Cohen rests between fighting fires in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A
man prepares to evacuate from his Santa Paula house on December 5. Tens
of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A man attempts to catch a horse that got loose during a wildfire in the Lake View Terrace area of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Shrubs burn near a home in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
James and Josie Ralstin carry belongings retrieved from their home in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Firefighters battle to put out a blaze engulfing homes in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
The Thomas Fire burns along a hillside near Santa Paula on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A
Los Angeles County Fire Department helicopter makes a water drop on
flames sweeping up a steep canyon wall, threatening homes on a ridge
line, after the Skirball wildfire swept through the Bel Air district on
Wednesday, December 6. The largest of the blazes, the Thomas fire,
started north of Santa Paula before spreading to Ventura, a coastal
city just north of Los Angeles. Powerful Santa Ana winds and extremely
dry conditions are fueling the wildfires in what has been a devastating
year for fires in California.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A firefighter mops up at a home consumed by a wildfire in the Bel Air district of Los Angeles on December 6.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Flames from the Thomas fire burn above a truck on Highway 101 north of Ventura.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Consumed vehicles in Ventura on Tuesday, December 5, as wildfires rage in Southern California.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Smoke billows from a burning house in Los Angeles as the Creek Fire moves through the area December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
The Thomas Fire spews smoke in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
The Creek Fire burns on a hillside in the Shadow Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
A firefighter battles the blaze in the Lake View Terrace area of Los Angeles on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Antoine Hanna comforts his wife, Tammy, after firefighters save their home in Ventura on December 5.
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Photos: Wildfires spread in Southern California
Fires leave an apartment complex leveled in Ventura on December 5.
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But when the flames crashed into it Tuesday night it was like a "gas bomb" going off, he said.
Tumbleweeds
5- or 6-feet in diameter shot hundreds of feet in the air, he said,
spreading the fire to new spots, including across the nearby 101
highway.
"It's humbling when you see Mother Nature be so aggressive," Lee said.
Lee said he had a kayak on his deck, just in case they need to escape by water.
I won't be a victim, man standing in rubble says
Sergio
Barbosa has gone through waves of emotions. On Tuesday he tried to go
back to the house he had lived in almost all his life, but police
wouldn't let him into the neighborhood.
So he and a friend walked around and found a neighbor with a golf cart that got Barbosa in.
He
had woken up that morning, a day after evacuating, with a bad feeling.
As they approached his address, he worried, "Please don't let that be my
house."
It was, and it was gone.
The
home his mother had helped build, where years of memories were made and
stored, was white rubble and melted shells in what used to be a
kitchen.
He was angry and sad. He was also relieved. He had his answer.
And "... at the end of the day I'm alive. My roommates are alive," he said.
He
says he will not let the fire make him a victim, even if all he has
left are a few clothes and some personal effects. And he will rebuild --
"twice as nice" -- in the neighborhood he loves.
"I'm not going to let one incident scare me off," he said.
The winds that cause the fire were part of the season's "strongest and longest" Santa Ana event. The Santa Anas
are strong, dry winds that high-pressure systems push from east to
west, from the mountains and desert areas down into the Los Angeles
area.
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