Los Angeles Archives - Iran News Daily

Los Angeles: More than 1,000 Homes Threatened by Wildfire

reporter 1222 — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 12:59:49 +0000

TEHRAN (Iran News) – A wildfire scorching its way through brush and timber from the mountains to the desert northeast of Los Angeles threatened more than 1,000 homes on Tuesday as crews across the West battled dozens of other major blazes.

The Bobcat Fire was advancing at a mile or two an hour at times and continued to threaten the Mojave Desert town of Pearblossom after burning into the Antelope Valley foothill area, on the other side of the San Gabriel Mountains from Los Angeles.

The blaze that began Sept. 6 destroyed or damaged at least 29 homes and other buildings, including some in the Juniper Hills area, with the toll rising to perhaps 85 when damage assessment teams can complete their work this week, authorities said.

Firefighters also battled flareups near Mount Wilson, which overlooks greater Los Angeles and has a historic observatory founded more than a century ago and numerous broadcast antennas serving Southern California.

The fire was fueled by vegetation that hadn’t burned in decades and pushed by erratic winds over the weekend, although they had died down by Monday, and were expected to remain light through Tuesday.

Near Mount Wilson, firefighters set more than a mile of fires designed to burn out the blaze’s fuel and act as a brake on its advance.

However, with the fire only about 15% contained, firefighters weren’t taking anything for granted.

“We’ve got a fire here that is bigger than the city of Denver, and it did it in two weeks,” said Sky Cornell with the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

About 1,100 homes and some 4,000 residents remained under evacuation orders, fire officials said Monday evening.

Evacuation warnings — meaning residents should be prepared to flee if ordered — remained in effect for the LA suburb of Pasadena, home of the Rose Bowl and the annual Rose Parade, and Wrightwood, a mountain community near several San Bernardino County ski resorts.

The blaze was one of more than two dozen major wildfires burning across California, including five of the largest in state history.

More than 5,600 square miles (14,500 square kilometers) have been charred, an area larger than the state of Connecticut, and at least 23,00 people remain evacuated statewide, Gov. Gavin Newsom said.

Early estimates are that 6,400 buildings have been destroyed across the state, but Newsom said “by no stretch of the imagination do we think this tells the entire story.” Damage assessments are ongoing, he said, AP reported.

Numerous studies in recent years have linked bigger US wildfires to global warming from the burning of coal, oil and gas, especially because climate change has made California much drier. A drier California means plants are more flammable.

Nearly 19,000 firefighters in California are currently battling 27 major blazes, Newsom said. At least 7,900 wildfires have erupted in the state this year, many during a mid-August barrage of dry lightning that ignited parched vegetation.

Twenty-six people have been killed. Officials were investigating the death of a firefighter at another Southern California wildfire that erupted earlier this month from a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used by a couple to reveal their baby’s gender.

Charles Morton, 39, died on Sept. 17 while battling the El Dorado Fire in San Bernardino National Forest about 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of Los Angeles.

Morton, was a 14-year veteran of the US Forest Service and a squad boss with the Big Bear Interagency Hotshot Crew of the San Bernardino National Forest.

“Charlie was a well-respected leader who was always there for his squad and his crew at the toughest times,” said US Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen.

“Charlie is survived by his wife and daughter, his parents, two brothers, cousins, and friends. He’s loved and will be missed. May he rest easy in heaven with his baby boy,” Morton’s family said in a statement.

In Wyoming, officials warned that “a high probability for fire growth” exists for a blaze burning toward cabins and an important water supply reservoir that’s a major source of water for the state’s capital city, Cheyenne. The Mullen Fire in the Medicine Bow National Forest is burning in heavily forested, rugged terrain that would usually be busy now with hunters at the start of elk hunting season.

And in Colorado, one of the state’s largest wildfires continued to grow slowly, with firefighters benefiting as the flames spread into flatter ground Monday. Still, the Cameron Peak Fire near Red Feather Lakes had covered 162.7 square miles (421.39 square kilometers) and was just 15% contained. At higher elevations, it devoured many lodgepole pine trees killed by a beetle infestation.

More than 9,000 firefighters continue to battle large wildfires across Oregon and Washington, where thousands of residences have been destroyed, the Pacific Northwest Region of the Forest Service said.

The post Los Angeles: More than 1,000 Homes Threatened by Wildfire appeared first on Iran News Daily.

Blaze in North of Los Angeles Prompts Evacuation

reporter 1222 — Thu, 13 Aug 2020 07:20:03 +0000

TEHRAN (Iran News) – A fast-moving brush fire north of Los Angeles prompted mandatory evacuation orders for some 500 homes on Wednesday as firefighters battled the flames that had burned 10,000 acres by early evening, authorities said.

The Lake Fire erupted at around 3:30 pm (2230 GMT) near Lake Hughes, about a 90-minute drive from Los Angeles, prompting neighborhood for evacuation.

Rapidly-spreading flames had scorched some 10,000 acres (4,050 hectares) within a little more than three hours, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

“Multiple agencies are battling a brush fire near the Lake Hughes area in the Angeles National Forest,” the department said in a tweet, AFP reported.

The smoke plume from the flames could be seen miles away from the site of the fire.

More than 300 firefighters backed by helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft were deployed to fight the blaze.

“#LASD deputies currently evacuating residents in the area,” the fire department said in another tweet, referring to the LA Sheriff’s Department. “Please help us help you & our loved ones get out safely.”

Wildfires have become more frequent and bigger in California in recent years, in part driven by climate change.

The deadliest fire in the state’s history – the Camp Fire – took place in northern California in November 2018 and killed 86 people.

The post Blaze in North of Los Angeles Prompts Evacuation appeared first on Iran News Daily.

Anti-racism protests turned US into battlefield

reporter 1222 — Sat, 30 May 2020 15:05:37 +0000

Anti-racism protests turned US into battlefield

According To Iran News, George Floyd’s death by the US police has caused a ripple of protests throughout the US, turning the country into a battlefield between police and demonstrators.

Following the tragic death of an American black man on May 25, 2020, due to the violence of a white Minneapolis police officer, hundreds of people have hit the streets across the US to protest against this behavior of the American police.

Rallies have turned violent in Los Angeles and Minneapolis, where the police have fired tear gas and rubber bullets against the demonstrators.

These protests came after disturbing footage surfaced online showing the police officer, Derek Chauvin, choking unarmed George Floyd to death after forcing him to the ground and pinning him down with his knee.

The officer refused to relieve the pressure, although Floyd was being heard repeatedly pleading for his life and saying, “I can’t breathe.”

The US President Donald Trump blamed the unrest on “thugs” in a tweet that was later hidden by Twitter for “glorifying violence.”

Former President Barack Obama has released a statement on the death of George Floyd and is pleading for Americans to open their eyes to the ongoing racial injustice that plagues the country.

The post Anti-racism protests turned US into battlefield appeared first on Iran News Daily.

Wildfire North of Los Angeles

reporter 1222 — Fri, 25 Oct 2019 09:37:35 +0000

40,000 Ordered to Evacuate as Wildfire Spreads North of Los Angeles

According To Iran News, Around 40,000 people north of Los Angeles have been ordered to evacuate after a brush fire broke out Thursday afternoon, officials said.

The Tick Fire near Agua Dulce in northern Los Angeles County has destroyed several structures, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said. It had spread to nearly 4,000 acres and was 5 percent contained late Thursday night, officials said.

It began at 1:42 p.m. near Tick Canyon Road in the Santa Clarita area, and numerous other fires have also broken out in the area, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said, NBC News reported.

While “numerous homes have been burned,” Barger said, officials haven’t yet been able to get an accurate damage assessment. “We know that at least six, but that number may rise,” she said.

The Los Angeles County Fire Department had tweeted that an estimated 50,000 residents were under evacuation orders, but later said that around 40,000 were under evacuation orders and that 10,000 structures were threatened.

A man in the Santa Clarita area was stunned by the proximity of the flames on a ridge. “Woah, Lord. What are we going to do?” the man, who identified himself as James, told NBC Los Angeles as the sky filled with a smoky haze.

“This is the first time I’ve seen this going on. Oh my goodness,” said the man, who has called the area home since 2006. “Wow. This is unbelievable. I’m about to leave — I can’t stay.”

More than 500 firefighters were working to combat the blaze Thursday as sustained winds of 20 mph and gusts of 40 mph were recorded, Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl Osby said. “We’re expecting stronger winds into tonight and into tomorrow morning,” he said.

He urged people to stay aware even if they can’t see flames because there are plenty of hot spots.

“If you have not been evacuated, stay vigilant,” Osby said at a Thursday night news conference. “These things can occur quickly,” he said.

The Tick Fire was one of several blazes in California fueled by high winds and low humidity, conditions that forecasters said were helping the fires grow. The National Weather Service said Santa Ana winds were gusting upwards of 45 to 55 mph across Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

In Northern California, around 2,000 people were ordered to evacuate in a rural part of northern Sonoma County after a fire broke out shortly before 9:30 p.m. Wednesday. It has grown to at least 16,000 acres, officials said.

Forty-nine homes or structures have been destroyed in the Kincade Fire, which broke out near the community of Geyserville, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, also known as Cal Fire. The damage assessment is continuing.

The fire was 5 percent contained Thursday evening. Around 1,300 firefighters are on the line and that number is expected to increase Cal Fire Chief Mike Parkes said.

“Because of the terrain of the area, the crews had a difficult time getting around it early on, and the fire grew much more quickly in size,” Parkes said.

No injuries have been reported in either fire.

The threat of wildfires prompted utility company Pacific Gas & Electric to pre-emptively shut off electricity to hundreds of thousands of people on Northern California on Wednesday to try and stop power lines from sparking blazes.

PG&E said in a regulatory filing with the state Public Utilities Commission on Thursday that it learned that a nearby transmission tower malfunctioned about seven minutes before the Kincade Fire erupted Wednesday night.

The utility said it learned from preliminary findings that a “transmission level outage” happened on a 230,000-volt line in the area at 9:20 p.m. Cal Fire says the Kincade Fire broke out at 9:27 p.m.

PG&E had shut off power to around 28,000 customers in Sonoma County, including in the Geyserville area where the fire began, but it did not de-energize transmission lines in the area.

“Those transmission lines were not de-energized because forecast weather conditions, particularly wind speeds, did not trigger the PSPS protocol,” PG&E said in a statement, referring to “public safety power shutoff,” the term used for the planned blackouts.

“The wind speeds of concern for transmission lines are higher than those for distribution,” the utility said in the statement.

The PG&E outages that began Wednesday were the second time in two weeks that the utility shut off power to large swaths of Northern California over fire risk.

In the first shutoff, power was cut to about 2 million people across northern and central California. In recent years, authorities have blamed electrical equipment for causing several deadly and destructive fires.

Weather conditions in Northern California eased by Thursday evening, and PG&E said that it has restored electricity to 84 percent of the 179,000 customers who had their power shut off.

But forecasters say another wind event could be in store for Northern California on Saturday evening.

Southern California Edison also was conducting preventive power outages. The utility said that as of 10 p.m. Thursday around 31,100 customers were without power, with a little more than 10,300 of those in Los Angeles County and about 7,400 in San Bernardino County.

The utility said on its website that 386,116 customers in Southern California are under consideration for blackouts under consideration.

The post Wildfire North of Los Angeles appeared first on Iran News Daily.