California wildfires

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Thousands of Calif. Fire Evacuees to Head Home

(Newser) - Thanks to cooler, more humid weather and a drop-off in damaging winds, thousands of Santa Barbara wildfire evacuees are being allowed back home, the Los Angeles Times reports. Firefighters fought back the fire significantly last night, containing the 8,700-acre Jesusita blaze in Santa Barbara by 30%. Most of the...

Oprah's House Evacuated as Wildfires Rage

Calif. fires come within a few miles of host's $50m home

(Newser) - Oprah Winfrey's mansion in Montecito has been evacuated as wildfires rage a few miles away in Santa Barbara, a source tells Us Weekly. Movers have been seen shifting the talk show host's belongings from the $50 million home. The fires have forced more than 30,500 people from their homes...

Outlook Grim for Calif. Fire as Winds Continue

(Newser) - Poor firefighting conditions today—following a windy night—have allowed the Santa Barbara, Calif., wildfire to grow, and it has now consumed 3,500 acres and 75 homes, KNBC-TV reports. The fire, which has forced 30,000 people to flee their homes, is just 10% contained. Winds today are expected...

Morning Winds Stoke Raging Calif. Wildfires

Firefighters unable to get blaze under control as 30,000 evacuate

(Newser) - Early-morning winds kicked up the uncontrolled Jesusita fire in the hills of Santa Barbara, causing the evacuation of thousands more residents, reports the Los Angeles Times. The fire has now burned more than 2,800 acres, destroyed dozens of homes, and forced 30,000 people to evacuate. Gov. Schwarzenegger has...

Calif. Fires Destroy Dozens of Homes

Santa Barbara under state of emergency as wildfires scorch hillsides

(Newser) - Raging wildfires in the hills above Santa Barbara have destroyed at least 20 homes and are threatening many more, reports the Los Angeles Times. Some 900 firefighters are battling the wind-driven fires, but are hampered by poor access to the area. Three were hospitalized with burns after flames engulfed their...

1,200 Homes Evacuated as Calif. Wildfire Slows

Wind could pick up later today

(Newser) - Helicopters dropping water during the night and calmer wind this morning are helping crews hold back a wildfire that has forced the evacuation of 1,200 California homes. An early start to the state's annual wildfire siege, the fire has burned 196 acres of brush and threatened some 2,000...

After Record US Drought, Bleak Summer Looms

Texas farmers fear poor crops, Calif. preps for increased wildfires

(Newser) - The first two months of this year have been the driest on record in the US, foreshadowing a summer of poor crops and brutal wildfires. Texas farmers have delayed planting corn and cotton, while cattle ranchers have sold off cows they can no longer feed. “It might take me...

Careless Students' Bonfire Started Montecito Blaze

Sheriff not sure bonfire builders will be charged

(Newser) - A group of students who failed to completely put out a hilltop bonfire apparently caused the destructive Montecito fire, a Santa Barbara sheriff told the Los Angeles Times. The blaze destroyed 210 homes and injured at least 25 people last week. A district attorney will decide whether to charge the...

SoCal Residents Return to Charred Homes

(Newser) - Residents of Yorba Linda, Calif. sifted through their charred belongings today amid 113 houses razed by the so-called "Freeway Complex Fire," the Los Angeles Times reports. Meanwhile fire officials shuttled residents into a mobile home park near the Sylmar fire, which has destroyed 477 houses and 10 commercial...

30,000 Flee Raging Fires
 30,000 Flee Raging Fires 

Nov 16, 2008 6:05 AM CST

30,000 Flee Raging Fires

Hundreds of homes destroyed by California blazes fueled by fierce Santa Ana winds

(Newser) - Nearly 30,000 people have fled three massive fires scorching thousands of acres from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles, reports the Los Angeles Times. Hundreds of homes have been gutted in three days of blazes fueled by raging Santa Ana winds that firefighters are struggling mightily to contain. Major freeways...

Huge LA Fire Roars Into Orange County

Worst blaze in nearly 50 years is only 10 percent contained

(Newser) - The worst LA wildfire in nearly 50 years has forced 10,000 people to flee and charred more than 500 homes in Sylmar, Calif., the LA Times and LA Daily News report. Flames also swept into Orange County today, burning at least 40 more homes and surrounding a high school....

80 Homes Burn in Hills Over Santa Barbara

Blaze overwhelms firefighters in enclave of the rich and famous

(Newser) - A wildfire ripped through the wealthy enclave of Montecito in Santa Barbara County last night, destroying some 80 homes, the Los Angeles Times reports. Firefighters were overwhelmed as the wind-driven brushfire spread out of control. Much of the area, home to dozens of celebrities, was evacuated as the blazes spread...

LA Wildfire Threatens Getty
 LA Wildfire Threatens Getty 
Oct 23, 2008 9:27 AM CDT

LA Wildfire Threatens Getty

Winds could move blaze unpredictably: officials

(Newser) - A wildfire raging in Los Angeles this morning threatens the Getty Center’s priceless paintings and sculptures, and homes in swanky Brentwood's hills, the Times reports. Firefighters temporarily closed an interstate as more than 500 of them deployed an air assault to battle the early-morning blaze. Officials worry winds picking...

Light Winds Aid LA Firefighters

But season for conflagration-fueling winds has just begun

(Newser) - Firefighters made progress early today in containing two Los Angeles-area fires, as calm winds prevented the flames from blazing a path to the Pacific Ocean, the Los Angeles Times reports. The older of the two fires, the Marek blaze, was 80% contained, and firefighters have begun to cut containment lines...

Winds Slow in Fire's 'Halftime'





 Winds Slow in Fire's 'Halftime' 
Oct 14, 2008 1:35 PM CDT

Winds Slow in Fire's 'Halftime'

One blaze 70% contained

(Newser) - Waning Santa Ana winds brought reprieve and progress—albeit temporary—for the firemen battling wildfires around Los Angeles, the Times reports. One nearly 5,000-acre fire near Lake View Terrace is now 70% contained, but a second in Porter Ranch doubled in size overnight. “This thing is not out....

Emergency Declared as Fires Lash LA Homes

2 killed, dozens of homes destroyed as flames roar into northern LA

(Newser) - California's governor has declared a state of emergency as twin wind-driven wildfires  tear through north Los Angeles. Unpredictable 60 mph Santa Ana winds are shooting roaring flames up canyons, and firefighters fear that one blaze—which has already jumped an eight-lane freeway—could burn all the way to the Pacific...

Hundreds Flee Calif. Wildfire
 Hundreds Flee Calif. Wildfire 
Oct 12, 2008 6:38 PM CDT

Hundreds Flee Calif. Wildfire

Blaze burns homes 20 miles north of Los Angeles

(Newser) - A wildfire engulfed 750 acres north of Los Angeles today and forced 1,200 people to flee, the Los Angeles Times reports. It also razed two houses and three motor homes. As helicopters water-bombed the blaze, officials said firefighters had “a really good handle” on it—but admitted the...

Defying Cops, Brothers Save Home From Fire

Amateurs' risky controlled burn lands Big Sur man in jail

(Newser) - When wildfires threatened their 55-acre family compound, two brothers in Big Sur, Calif., fought back with a risky tactic—a controlled burn. The plan saved the homes on the property they've cultivated for decades, but one of the brothers is now facing jail time for disobeying police orders, reports the...

California Blaze a 'Gorilla'
 California Blaze a 'Gorilla' 
Jul 7, 2008 3:00 AM CDT

California Blaze a 'Gorilla'

Firefighters face long, exhausting season

(Newser) - A wildfire in California's Santa Barbara County grew by another 700 acres in addition to 10,000 acres already charred as teams of exhausted firefighters continued to battle the fast-moving blaze. The Gap fire is a priority among the 1,781 blazes which have raged in the state over the...

Calif. Firefighters Battle 2 Huge Blazes

Predicted heat wave will magnify 1,700 fires in Calif.

(Newser) - Thousands of California firefighters battled a huge blaze today that threatened homes in Santa Barbara County, but lost ground to another fire near Big Sur, the Los Angeles Times reports. And weather likely will not help: Winds, lightning strikes, and fierce heat are expected to hit the state this week....

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