Fall Wildfires Erupt in Southern California
Updated 10/14/19: The California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) has created a incident map tracking the latest active wildfires around the state.
Active Incident Summary (abbreviated):
Saddleridge Fire
– Containment: 43%
– Acres Burned: 7,965
Sandalwood Fire
– Containment: 94%
– Acres Burned: 1,011
Updated 10/14/19: KNBC 4 published a report offering the latest updates on active wildfires currently impacting portions of Southern California.
Wildfire Threat Diminishes After Days of Flames and Smoke in Southern California
Updated 10/13/19: The California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) has created a incident map tracking the latest active wildfires around the state.
Active Incident Summary (abbreviated):
Saddleridge Fire
– Containment: 33%
– Acres Burned: 7,965
Sandalwood Fire
– Containment: 68%
– Acres Burned: 1,011
Updated 10/13/19: CNN published a report offering the latest updates on active wildfires currently impacting portions of Southern California.
Updated 10/12/19: The California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) has created a incident map tracking the latest active wildfires around the state.
Active Incident Summary (abbreviated):
Saddleridge Fire
– Containment: 13%
– Acres Burned: 7542
Sandalwood Fire
– Containment: 10%
– Acres Burned: 823
Updated 10/12/19: NBC News published a report offering the latest updates on active wildfires currently impacting portions of Southern California.
Race is on to contain wind-fueled Los Angeles wildfire (full report)
Updated 10/11/19: California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an emergency proclamation for two counties impacted by wildfire activity.
Governor Newsom Declares State of Emergency in Los Angeles and Riverside Counties Due to Fires (full proclamation)
Associated County ZIP Code List
Disaster Alert
October 11, 2019
Source: The Weather Channel
Approximate areas containing homes damaged or destroyed:
California
– Calimesa (Riverside County, 92223, 92320, 92373)
– Fontana (San Bernardino County, 92316, 92331, 92334, 92335, 92336, 92337, 92377)
– Granada Hills (Los Angeles County, 91344, 91394)
– Porter Ranch (Los Angeles County, 91326)
NOTE: This has not yet been declared a FEMA Disaster.
At a Glance
- Residents of more than 12,000 homes in Los Angeles were ordered to evacuate.
- The 210 and 5 Freeways are closed because of the Saddleridge Fire that began Thursday night.
- Earlier Thursday, numerous mobile homes were destroyed in Calimesa, California, by a wildfire.
- About 250,000 customers still had no electricity in Northern California.
- Costs of the outages could top $1 billion, economists say.
A fast-moving wildfire jumped into neighborhoods in Los Angeles overnight forcing evacuations, destroying homes and closing two freeways and an interstate.
Flames from the Saddleridge Fire, which started about 9 p.m. Thursday in Sylmar, crossed over the 210 Freeway and later the 5 Freeway. Both highways were closed because of smoke. Interstate 405 was closed at State Road 118.
By 4 a.m. local time Friday, the fire had spread to more than 7 square miles in the northern foothills of the San Fernando Valley, according to the Associated Press. The Los Angeles Fire Department deemed the fire a “Major Emergency”, the highest classification there is for a fire emergency.
Officials ordered mandatory evacuations for 12,700 homes in the Porter Ranch, Granada Hills and Oakridge Estates neighborhoods. Some residents had already gone to bed before the order to flee came.
Several homes were seen burning in Granada Hills, and the Los Angeles Fire Department said an “unknown number” of homes were potentially threatened.
There were no reports of injuries.
The Saddleridge Fire was one of several major wildfires that burned as hundreds of thousands of California residents entered a third day without electricity. Utilities had shut off the power in an effort to prevent falling or sparking wires igniting fires.
On Thursday afternoon, a blaze known as the Sandalwood Fire grew rapidly and destroyed numerous mobile homes in the town of Calimesa, about 65 miles east of Los Angeles. The Riverside County Fire Department said 74 structures were destroyed in the fire and another 16 damaged.
Fire crews responded quickly to the fire as it invaded the Villa Calimesa Mobile Home Park not far from Interstate 10. The surrounding area, which includes a middle school, was ordered to evacuate as the fire grew and moved quickly to the west, away from the freeway.
As the fire expanded to an estimated 500 acres, footage from a KTLA-TV helicopter showed dozens of mobile homes on fire.
For full report, please click the source link above.
