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Firefighters manage to contain wildfires, residents return to ash and cinders
Firefighters continued to make gains early on Monday on three raging wildfires that reduced hundreds of homes to ash and cinders forcing thousands of residents to flee in Southern California.
- Agencies
- Published: 16:19 November 17, 2008
- Firefighters continued to battle California wildfires that destroyed more than 800 homes.
- Image Credit: AP
Diamond Bar, California: Firefighters continued to make gains early on Monday on three raging wildfires that reduced hundreds of homes to ash and cinders forcing thousands of residents to flee in Southern California.
Ferocious Santa Ana winds finally abated after fanning the blazes that have destroyed more than 800 houses, mobile homes and apartments since Thursday night from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles and counties to the east. In all, the fires burned more than 142 square kilometres.
In Orange and Riverside counties, the fires chewed through nearly 9,712 hectares and were pushing toward Diamond Bar in Los Angeles county. A major aerial attack on Sunday raised containment to 19 per cent.
Meanwhile, a 39 square kilometre fire that hit hard in the Sylmar area of northern Los Angeles on Saturday had moved into the Placerita Canyon area of the rugged San Gabriel Mountains and was burning vigorously, but well outside the city. It was 40 per cent contained.
The Santa Barbara-area fire that swept through the celebrity-studded enclave of Montecito has burned 8 square kilometres and was 80 per cent contained.
Officials warned of another bad air day on Monday, and classes were cancelled at dozens of schools near the fire zones in Orange County.
Starting on Monday morning anxious residents of the Oakridge Mobile Home Park in Sylmar, where 484 homes were destroyed by fire early Saturday, will be allowed to return to inspect their property. Firefighters were able to save about 120 other homes in the community, but many were badly damaged.
Dog teams had been searching the burned units to determine whether anybody perished during the fast-moving fire, but so far no bodies have been found, police said.
Tracy Burns knew her Sylmar home was gone but still wanted to get into the gated community to see what remained.
"Even those of us who know there's nothing left, we want to go in and kick over the rubble and see if we can find something, anything," Burns said.
Tears welled in her partner Wendy Dannenberg's eyes as she echoed: "If I can find one broken piece of one dish anything, anything at all."
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