| A wall of flames from a backfire light up a hillside behind homes August 31, 2009 in La Crescenta, California. The out of control Station Fire has burned more than 105,000 acres and has forced thousands of evacuations as nearly 12,000 homes are threatened. | ||
Fire crews battling the blaze in the Angeles National Forest tried desperately to beat back the flames and prayed for scorching weather conditions to ease. The fire was the largest of at least eight burning across California after days of triple-digit temperatures and low humidity.
The fire scorched 164 square miles of brush and threatened more than 12,000 homes, but the lack of wind kept them from driving stormily into the hearts of the dense suburbs northeast of Los Angeles.
Columns of smoke billowed high into the air before dispersing into a gauzy white haze that burned eyes and prompted warnings of unhealthy air throughout the Los Angeles area. Smoke could be seen billowing around the fabled Hollywood sign.
"It's burning everywhere," U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Dianne Cahir said. "When it gets into canyons that haven't burned in numerous years, it takes off. If you have any insight into the good Lord upstairs, put in a request."
Authorities backpedaled on an earlier report that five people were trapped at a smoky ranch near Gold Creek. The five men and one woman had been asked multiple times to evacuate but refused to leave.
"When we tried to get them out, they said they're fine, no problem, they didn't want to leave," fire spokesman Larry Marinas said.
The exact number of people injured or threatened by the fire was still not clear.
Among those evacuated were Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Rafael Furcal and his wife. Their home is in an area of La Canada Flintridge threatened by the massive Station Fire. Furcal was given the day off and did not play in Monday's home game against Arizona.
Over the weekend, three people who refused to evacuate were burned when they were overrun by flames, including a couple who had sought refuge in a hot tub, authorities said.
Fire crews set backfires and sprayed fire retardant at Mount Wilson, home to at least 20 television transmission towers, radio and cell phone antennas, and the century-old Mount Wilson Observatory. The observatory also houses two giant telescopes and several multimillion-dollar university programs. It is both a landmark for its historic discoveries and a thriving modern center for astronomy.
The fire about a half-mile away was expected to reach the mountaintop sometime Monday night, said Los Angeles County fire Capt. Mark Whaling. If the flames hit the mountain, cell phone service and TV and radio transmissions would be disrupted, but the extent was unclear.
The blaze killed two firefighters, destroyed at least 21 homes and forced thousands of evacuations. The firefighters died when their truck drove off the side of a road with flames all around them.
The victims were fire Capt. Tedmund Hall, 47, of San Bernardino County, and firefighter Specialist Arnaldo "Arnie" Quinones, 35, of Palmdale. Hall was a 26-year veteran, and Quinones had been a county firefighter for eight years.
Quinones' wife is expecting and due to give birth to their first child in the next few weeks.
Hall and his wife have two boys, ages 20 and 21, and was described as a family-oriented man who loved riding motorcycles.
They died fighting a fire that showed no signs of subsiding Monday. People who fled returned to find their homes gone.
"It's the worst roller coaster of my life, and I hate roller coasters," said Adi Ellad, who lost his home in Big Tujunga Canyon over the weekend. "One second I'm crying, one second I'm guilty, the next moment I'm angry, and then I just want to drink tequila and forget."
Ellad left behind a family heirloom Persian rug and a photo album he put together after his father died. "I'm going to have to figure out a new philosophy: how to live without loving stuff," he said.
The blaze in the Los Angeles foothills is the biggest but not most destructive of California's wildfires. Northeast of Sacramento, a wind-driven fire destroyed 60 structures over the weekend, many of them homes in the town of Auburn.
The 275-acre blaze was 50 percent contained Monday afternoon and full containment was expected Tuesday. It wiped out an entire cul-de-sac, leaving only smoldering ruins, a handful of chimneys and burned cars.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger toured the Auburn area, where only charred remnants of homes remained on Monday. At some houses, the only things left on the foundation are metal cabinets and washers and dryers.
By John Antczak (AP)
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.
View more comments