FIRE CREWS NOW ON STANDBY DRY WINDS BRING ALERT TO VALLEY.Byline: Bhavna Mistry Staff Writer SANTA CLARITA Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, - Additional firefighters were assigned Tuesday to the Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley is the valley of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. It stretches through Los Angeles County and Ventura County. Its main population center is the city of Santa Clarita. The valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,672. where dry warm winds prompted an extreme fire danger warning. Five extra Los Angeles County Fire Department Not to be confused with Los Angeles Fire Department. The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD), serves unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, as well as 58 cities and towns that choose to have the county provide fire and EMS services, including the City of La engines were on standby at Station 73 as warm temperatures and Santa Ana wind The Santa Ana winds (or Santana winds) are warm, dry winds that characteristically appear in Southern California weather during autumn and early winter. Meteorology conditions mixed with dry brittle brush to produce potentially dangerous fire conditions. ``It's unseasonably warm,'' Battalion Chief Michael Singer said. ``On top of that it's unseasonably dry. We have an increased fire danger.'' In addition to the extra manpower, firefighting aircraft were primed for action. ``This is the heart of the problem,'' Singer said of the Santa Clarita Valley. ``And on a day like today, everybody is ready.'' Also in preparation for potential fires, local fire stations canceled any drills or community events scheduled Tuesday. They ate early lunches and waited on standby. ``We're focused on readiness,'' Singer said. ``Sometimes, we don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. when the next lunch will be.'' The extreme fire warning is the highest rating issued by the Fire Department and means the fire danger is at its highest. In addition, the department issued a red flag warning A Red Flag Warning is a forecast warning issued by the United States National Weather Service to tell area firefighting and land management agencies that conditions are ideal for wildland fire ignition and propagation. . ``We are in a red flag warning, meaning that there is a 90 percent chance of a fire hazard fire hazard fire n that's a fire hazard → das ist feuergefährlich fire hazard n that's a fire hazard → comporta rischi in caso d'incendio ,'' Inspector Mike Brown said. The National Weather Service said that temperatures in Newhall reached a high of 74 degrees Tuesday and winds were recorded at up to 30 mph. A wind advisory was issued through 2 p.m. today. Forecasters predicted similar weather today. ``Tomorrow will be the warmest day, and it will cool down the rest of the week a few degrees a day,'' said Ray Tanabe, a forecaster with the National Weather Service. ``It will be the peak of the mild Santa Ana event.'' In addition to the county's strike team stationed in the Santa Clarita Valley, the California Department of Forestry also had a strike team on standby in the fire-prone Malibu area. ``Our job is that if a fire starts to keep it small,'' Singer said. |
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