Results tagged “wildfire” from Crime Scene

Several fires broke out Tuesday in a densely populated area of Diamond Bar along the 60 freeway.

Super Scoopers have already attacked the blazes. it is uncertain how many homes are threatened. Fire seems to be rapidly moving through brush along hte 60 freeway. A smoke plume is visible from our office here in West Covina.

Here's a Google Map of the area:



View Diamond Ranch Fire in a larger map

From Martin Quiroz at Azusa City Hall:

There are several smoke animations on the web, including the SSD Fire Detection Map.This satellite image comes from the NOAA:

View Altadena evacuation area in a larger map

There is no clear boundaries to the area being evacuated in Altadena. 

Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Under Investigation
Date of Origin	Wednesday August 26th, 2009 approx 03:30 PM
Location	Los Angeles River Ranger District / Angeles National Forest
Incident Commander	Jim Hall

Current Situation

Total Personnel	751
Size	5,000 acres
Estimated Containment Date	Tuesday September 08th, 2009 approx 06:00 PM
Fuels Involved	Very heavy fuels of ceanothus, chamise, scrub oak and manzanita across the entire fire area, 15 to 20 feet in height with Big Cone Douglas Fier in the drainage bottoms. Fuels have not experienced any significant large fire activity in the past 40 years.
Fire Behavior	Friday behavior was very active to extreme, with rapid rates of spread and flame lenghts up to 80 feet. There is a potential for Saturday's fire behavior to be similar to Friday. Around noon Saturday, after the inversion has lifted, expect actively spreading fire with upslope runs. Spotting may occur from 1/4 mile up to 1/2 mile.
Significant Events	3 Mandatory Evacuations as of early Saturday morning include Starlight Crest Drive north to Green Ridge Court, including Forest Green Drive, two, Big Briar Way at Haskel, and third, Donna Maria Lane, Indian Drive, Hacienda Drive, Alta Canada Rd., North of Linda Vista, La Canada Blvd. north of El Vago Street. Evacuation Center: La Canada High School, 4463 Oak Grove Drive, La Canada, CA. Angeles Crest Highway remains closed.

Outlook

Planned Actions	Prepare and protect structures when and where necessary. Construct handlines and dozer lines.
Growth Potential	Extreme
Terrain Difficulty	Extremely steep and inaccessible
Remarks	1800 homes threatened. 27 commercial properties and 52 other stuctures threatened.

Current Weather

Wind Conditions	5-8 mph E
Temperature	80 degrees
Humidity	30%

PROCLAMATION

by the

Governor of the State of California

            WHEREAS on August 26, 2009, fires started in Los Angeles County and continue to burn; and 

            WHEREAS on August 27, 2009, fires stared in Monterey County and continue to burn; and 

            WHEREAS the fires have burned approximately 13,000 acres, and have threatened structures, destroyed homes, and have forced hundreds of people to be evacuated and sent to emergency shelters; and

            WHEREAS the circumstances of these fires, by reason of their magnitude, are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment and facilities of any single county, city and county, or city and require the combined forces of a mutual aid region or regions to combat; and

            WHEREAS under the provisions of section 8558(b) of the California Government Code, I find that conditions of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property exist due to the fires in Los Angeles and Monterey Counties.

            NOW, THEREFORE, I, ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, Governor of the State of California, in accordance with the authority vested in me by the state Constitution and statutes, including the California Emergency Services Act, and in particular, section 8625 of the California Government Code, HEREBY PROCLAIM A STATE OF EMERGENCY to exist within Los Angeles and Monterey Counties.

            IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that all agencies of the state government utilize and employ state personnel, equipment and facilities for the performance of any and all activities consistent with the direction of the California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA) and the State Emergency Plan, and that CalEMA provide local government assistance under the authority of the California Disaster Assistance Act. 

            I FURTHER DIRECT that as soon as hereafter possible, this proclamation be filed in the Office of the Secretary of State and that widespread publicity and notice be given of this proclamation.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of California to be affixed this 28th Day of August 2009.

ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST -- A wildfire stoked by an unrelenting heatwave burned its way up Azusa Canyon Road Wednesday blackening more than 750 acres and a "rapidly moving" second fire threatened to close the Angeles Crest Highway several miles north of Morris Dam.

Officials late Wednesday ordered mandatory evacuations for dozens of residents along the East Fork of the San Gabriel River, and could offer no estimate as to when the blaze might be contained.

"It definitely has the potential to grow," said Pam Bierce, a spokeswoman with the Southern California Incident Management team, a federal government agency that is coordinating the firefighting effort.

As of 3:30 p.m. the fire was 10 percent contained but a second blaze threatened homes as far north as the Angeles Crest Highway, officials said.

An evacuation center has been set up at El ROble Imtermediate School, 665 North Mountain Avenue in Claremont has been established for those residents who are being escorted down from the canyon by deputies with the Los Angeles COunty Sheriff's Department.

A disptacher with Angeles National Forest Fire Service said the second blaze is west of the Morris Fire and that they have "full brush" on it and LA County Fire responded as well.

The second fire was reported at Mile Marker 29 on the Angeles Crest Highway. It was reported at 3:23 p.m. as a brush fire, a Los Angeles COunty Fire Department inspector said.

Here's a bulletin from the National Weather Service for Azusa, where a 700 acre wildfire continues to burn above Morris Dam:

Some reports have listed the Morris Fire at 700 acres this morning. The state's Inciweb site maintains that the blaze has consumed 275 acres. 

Here's the link. It's live and streaming.

Scanner reports indicate a wildfire near Morris Dam may have been started by a errant cigarette. Deputies are seeking a La Puente teen in connection with incident. Apparently a few teens have been detained near the scene, according to traffic on the LASD A-TAC frequency.

With a header visible throughout the San Gabriel Valley, a wildfire is burning out of control in Azusa Canyon near Morris Dam and East Fork Road. Preliminary data indicates the fire has burned about 25 acres. Several news helicopters are hovering above the brusher.

No evacuations underway, but this might be the season's first wildfire, from Valley News:

TEMECULA- A wildland fire that began at approximately 2:34 p.m. west of Temecula in the De Luz area of Riverside County is now reported to have encompasses between 75 and 100 acres.

With winds of 10 to 15 miles per hour, officials say the blaze is moving toward Winchester Road.

Rancho California Road has now been closed in both direction at Business Center Drive.

Firefighters on the scene say the fire is burning in steep, dense terrain in heavy fuel (brush-filled) areas.

Fire officials have not indicated any evacuations are underway at this time.

The Sierra Madre emergency alert system is flying a green flag today -- which means the city is in Stage One alert mode for potential mudslides.

The system alerts residents to mudslide danger on local hillsides. It grew out of a wildfire last spring that destroyed several acres fo brush in the foothills just above the tiny San Gabriel Valley community.

Here's what a Green Flag means, according to the site:

The City's state of emergency level is now at Stage One: GREEN FLAG--Activated under a prediction of 80%--100% chance of precipitation. Affected residents should get "READY" for potential evacuation. This includes keeping a close watch on weather forecasts.

Here's some city links of interest:

Weather

Emergency Blog

Mud Safety Info

Just saw KCBS/KCAL reporter Serene Branson do a story on this video. Thought I'd share it with Crime Scene readers:

 

Freeway Complex Fire Information:
Last Updated:	November 16, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Date/Time Started:	November 15, 2008 at 9:07 am
Administrative Unit:	CAL FIRE / Orange County Fire Authority / Corona City Fire / Anaheim Fire / Chino Valley Fire
County:	Orange County / Riverside County
Location:	Between Corona, Chino Hills, Yorba Linda, Brea & Anaheim
Acres Burned:	23,722 acres
Containment:	19% contained
Structures Threatened:	3,500 structures are threatened.
Structures Destroyed:	STRUCTURES DAMAGED OR DESTROYED: 64 buildings OR 104 residences. Anaheim - 10 homes, 10 apartment buildings (50 apartment units) - TOTAL of 60 residences Yorba Linda - 70 residences Corona - 16 residences
Evacuations:	Evacuations and Road Closures
Cause:	Under Investigation
Cooperating Agencies:	CAL FIRE, Orange County Fire Authority, Corona Fire, Anahiem City Fire, Chino Valley Fire, CHP, CDCR and CCC.
Total Fire Personnel:	3,699 Total Personnel 575 Engines 77 Crews 35 Dozers 7 Watertenders 16 Helicopters 12 Airtankers
Conditions:	The Freeway Complex is made up of the Freeway Fire and the Landfill Fire. CAL FIRE Incident Command Team #6 has transitioned into a unified command. Firefighters made good progress in containing this fire as the Santa Ana Winds died down significantly. Many Evacuations and road closures remain in effect.
Triangle Complex Information:	(714) 628-7085

Reporter Maritza Velazquez tracked down a young woman who lost everything in Hurricane Katrina only to face the similar prospect as a resident of Diamond Bar Saturday. Here's the top of her story:

DIAMOND BAR -- Three years ago Danita Clark lost everything.
She came close to experiencing a similar loss Sunday when she and nearly 1,800 others were evacuated from their neighborhoods in Diamond Bar ahead of the raging Triangle Complex Fire.
"I took everything I could. I've been through Hurricane Katrina, so I know how it is to come back and not have anything," Clark said.
In August 2005, the 22-year-old was forced to evacuate her Slidell, Louisiana home when Hurricane Katrina hit and ultimately devastated the Gulf Coast.
After living in a hotel and eating from fast food restaurants everyday for a month, she returned. But her former home was in ruins. The furniture was severely molded and the home was flooded with water that reached six-feet in height.

Triangle Complex (includes Freeway Fire) Information:
Last Updated:	November 16, 2008 at 4:00 pm
Date/Time Started:	November 15, 2008 at 9:07 am
Administrative Unit:	CAL FIRE / Orange County Fire Authority / Corona City Fire / Anaheim Fire / Chino Valley Fire
County:	Orange County / Riverside County
Location:	Corona and Orange County (Yorba Linda, Brea & Anaheim)
Acres Burned:	10,475 acres
Containment:	0% contained
Structures Threatened:	More than 3,500 structures are threatened.
Structures Destroyed:	STRUCTURES DAMAGED OR DESTROYED: 64 buildings OR 104 residences. Anaheim - 10 homes, 10 apartment buildings (50 apartment units) - TOTAL of 60 residences Yorba Linda - 70 residences Corona - 16 residences
Evacuations:	Evacuations and Road Closures
Cause:	Under Investigation
Cooperating Agencies:	CAL FIRE, Orange County Fire Authority, Corona Fire, Anahiem City Fire, Chino Valley Fire, CHP, CDCR and CCC.
Total Fire Personnel:	600 Total Personnel 75 Engines 1 Crew 1 Dozer 4 Watertenders 18 Helicopters 12 Airtankers
Conditions:	The Freeway Fire and the Landfill Fire have been made into the Triangle Complex. CAL FIRE Incident Command Team #6 has transitioned into a unified command. Major concerns are the high winds and large scale evacuations. Evacuations and road closures remain in effect. A Red Flag Warning remains in effect until 4:00 pm. today.  For weather information check with National Weather Service - Southern California or California Weather.
Triangle Complex Information:	(714) 628-7085