|
| ©AP Photo/Phil Klein |
| Firefighters watch as a brush fire burns out of control in the Santa Ynez Mountains near Goleta, Calif., on Saturday July 5, 2008. A slew of wildfires, most ignited by lightning two weeks ago, have burned more than 800 square miles of land throughout California. The blazes have destroyed at least 67 homes and other buildings and contributed to the death of a firefighter who suffered a heart attack while digging fire lines. |
Wildfires
Firefighters got a gift of a mild, mostly windless night and a forecast for similar conditions Sunday as they attempted to protect thousands of Santa Barbara County homes from a huge wildfire, one of more than 300 taxing their energy and resources around the state.
|
Update: Dry weather, fires, spontaneous combustion? As it turns out the Taurid meteor event was not a complete bust, more like a combustion:
1st of July 2008 - Witnesses across Southern California say they saw an object 'moving very fast across the northern sky' and falling near the San Bernardino Mountains. Officials have no firm answers on what it was.Now isn't it a "coincidence" that California became engulfed, at its peak, in 1,783 fires across the state, scorching over 527,000 acres, including one in the San Bernardino mountains. Firefighters are still battling over 300 fires. Yet, all the fires are being blamed on "unusual early-summer lightning storms".
From Hollywood Hills to the Nevada state line, people reported seeing a fireball streaking across the sky and falling near the San Bernardino Mountains this morning. But explanations of the mysterious object were scarce.
San Bernardino County Fire Dispatch reported receiving dozens of calls related to what was described as fireball moving at high speed and falling in northwest sky around 10:40 a.m.
"We got quite a few reports. It started with a gentlemen in the Lake Arrowhead reporting a fireball in the Meadow Bay area and then we started getting calls from all over," said San Bernardino County dispatch supervisor Tom Barnes. "Fire crews in Barstow and on I-15 near Stateline came up on the radio and reported an object in the sky moving very fast across the northern sky and described it as yellowish green in color with streaks of debris. It looked like it burned up before it hit the ground."
Authorities on Wednesday ordered most of the remaining residents of this scenic coastal community to leave after an out-of-control wildfire jumped a fire line and threatened more homes.
New mandatory evacuation notices were issued Wednesday morning for an additional 10-mile stretch along Highway 1, bringing the total length of the evacuated area to about 25 miles of the coast, emergency officials said.
"The fire is just a big raging animal right now," said Darby Marshall, spokesman for the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services.
Firefighters are battling more than 1,100 wildfires, mostly ignited by lightning, that have scorched 680 square miles and destroyed 60 homes and other buildings across Northern California since June 20, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
New mandatory evacuation notices were issued Wednesday morning for an additional 10-mile stretch along Highway 1, bringing the total length of the evacuated area to about 25 miles of the coast, emergency officials said.
"The fire is just a big raging animal right now," said Darby Marshall, spokesman for the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services.
|
| ©NASA photo via Associated Press |
| Fires near Big Sur are shown in a photo from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer instrument on NASA's Terra satellite on Sunday, June 29, 2008. The image combines a natural color portrayal of the landscape with thermal infrared data showing the active burning areas in red. The dark area in the lower right is a previous forest fire. |
Firefighters are battling more than 1,100 wildfires, mostly ignited by lightning, that have scorched 680 square miles and destroyed 60 homes and other buildings across Northern California since June 20, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Dry, hot conditions and lightning strikes sparked at least seven fires in the Reno-Sparks area Sunday, while smoke from fires in California continued to blow into the Reno area.
Firefighters in Northern California battled more than a thousand wildfires to a stalemate by Sunday, but forecasters said dangerous conditions would not relent anytime soon.
No new major fires had broken out Sunday as fire crews inched closer to getting some of the largest blazes surrounded, according to the state Office of Emergency Services.
But a "red flag warning" - meaning the most extreme fire danger - was still in effect for Northern California until 5 a.m. Monday. And the coming days and months are expected to bring little relief.
Forecasters predicted more thunderstorms and dry lightning through the weekend, similar to the ones that ignited hundreds of fires a week ago. Meanwhile, a U.S. Forest Service report said the weather would get even drier and hotter as fire season headed toward its traditional peak in late July and August.
No new major fires had broken out Sunday as fire crews inched closer to getting some of the largest blazes surrounded, according to the state Office of Emergency Services.
|
| ©AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez |
| Brandon Hoefs, of Nebraska, a member of the Mid Plains Interagency fire crew, turns away from a wildfire as it nears the deck of a home on Partington Ridge Rd. south of Big Sur, Calif., Friday, June 27, 2008. Fire crews continue to fight the Basin Complex fire, which is burning in the Los Padres National Forest near the coastal town of Big Sur. |
But a "red flag warning" - meaning the most extreme fire danger - was still in effect for Northern California until 5 a.m. Monday. And the coming days and months are expected to bring little relief.
Forecasters predicted more thunderstorms and dry lightning through the weekend, similar to the ones that ignited hundreds of fires a week ago. Meanwhile, a U.S. Forest Service report said the weather would get even drier and hotter as fire season headed toward its traditional peak in late July and August.
Hundreds of lightning-sparked wildfires have turned the air of Northern California into an unhealthy stew of smoke and ash, forcing the cancellation of athletic events and other outdoor activities.
More than a dozen wildfires have been sparked in Colorado in the past week, most by "dry lightning," and the biggest has burned more than 1,100 acres in Park County.
The Nash Ranch fire, which started Thursday afternoon east of Guffey, forced the evacuation of about 150 homes, said Linda Balough, a Park County spokeswoman.
Two structures - a shed and camper trailer - have been lost to the blaze, Balough said.
About 125 fire fighters, including a Rocky Mountain Area Type II Incident Management Team, swarmed into the Guffey area to battle the blaze, she said.
Dry conditions, swirling winds and high temperatures have combined to make this year an active fire season.
The Nash Ranch fire, which started Thursday afternoon east of Guffey, forced the evacuation of about 150 homes, said Linda Balough, a Park County spokeswoman.
Two structures - a shed and camper trailer - have been lost to the blaze, Balough said.
About 125 fire fighters, including a Rocky Mountain Area Type II Incident Management Team, swarmed into the Guffey area to battle the blaze, she said.
Dry conditions, swirling winds and high temperatures have combined to make this year an active fire season.
|
| ©The Colorado Springs Gazette | KEVIN KRECK |
| A single engine air tanker drops retardent on the fire burning near Guffy, Colo., Friday, June 27, 2008. |
Fire crews already spread thin fighting blazes across California are dealing with a flurry of new fires on the North Coast caused from an unusual and powerful lightning storm that struck on Friday.
As of Saturday evening, CAL FIRE reported that approximately 37 lightning-caused fires were started during the past 24 hours in widely scattered areas of its Humboldt-Del Norte Unit.
As of Saturday evening, CAL FIRE reported that approximately 37 lightning-caused fires were started during the past 24 hours in widely scattered areas of its Humboldt-Del Norte Unit.
One building and a corral burned today after dry lightning strikes ignited at least four grass fires that were nourished by strong wind gusts.
El Paso County Sheriff's Lt. Lari Sevene said authorities received at least six calls about 2 p.m. of fires in the area, roughly 15 miles east of Colorado Springs.
Sevene said deputies notified residents in a "a handful - maybe three or four" homes to evacuate or prepare to evacuate. No injuries to people or animals were reported.
Two of the fires were under control by 4 p.m. Wednesday.
As of 5:00 p.m., some 1,000 acres had been consumed by four separate fires.
El Paso County Sheriff's Lt. Lari Sevene said authorities received at least six calls about 2 p.m. of fires in the area, roughly 15 miles east of Colorado Springs.
Sevene said deputies notified residents in a "a handful - maybe three or four" homes to evacuate or prepare to evacuate. No injuries to people or animals were reported.
Two of the fires were under control by 4 p.m. Wednesday.
As of 5:00 p.m., some 1,000 acres had been consumed by four separate fires.
Firefighters say a wildfire that broke out in grass and scrub oak near Cheyenne Mountain may have been started by lightning.
Colorado Springs Fire Lt. Brian Keys says the five-acre fire Friday likely was sparked by a lighting strike Thursday that smoldered.
Colorado Springs Fire Lt. Brian Keys says the five-acre fire Friday likely was sparked by a lighting strike Thursday that smoldered.
