FIRE DEVASTATES OJAI; DOZENS EVACUATE HILL AREAS.Byline: David Greenberg The creator of this article, or someone who has substantially contributed to it, may have a conflict of interest regarding its subject matter. It may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia's content policies, particularly neutral point of view. and Cecilia Chan Staff Writers Fighting roaring flames with a garden hose, a couple tried unsuccessfully to save their home before fleeing a raging brush fire that blackened black·en v. black·ened, black·en·ing, black·ens v.tr. 1. To make black. 2. To sully or defame: a scandal that blackened the mayor's name. 3. 3,000 acres Wednesday and, with a second, smaller fire, prompted Ventura County to be declared a local disaster area. Winds of up to 70 mph whipped the Ojai fire, forcing nearly 200 residents - including those in a retirement home - to be evacuated Tuesday night and drawing 800 firefighters and emergency personnel to battle the blaze. ``I was trying to wet things down, then we just had a straight-on firestorm,'' said Tom Forgea who, with his wife, Gloria, saved only their dogs, cats, wedding album and one Christmas gift before their home of 10 years was destroyed. ``Twenty-five years worth of music, my piano, my guitar, my upright bass, all my instruments - it's just amazing a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. ,'' said Tom Forgea, an assistant director at Ventura County's Juvenile Hall who was planning to retire in March. ``We thought we would just wet it down like we usually do. We never thought it would burn down.'' Officials had not yet determined the cause of the blaze in upper Ojai and the Los Padres National Forest Los Padres National Forest is a forest located in southern and central California, which includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Monterey, extending inland. Elevations range from sea level to 8,831 feet. , and by Wednesday afternoon had no estimate on when it would be under control. A second, smaller fire in the Rincon area raged across 300 acres and was expected to be contained by Wednesday afternoon. ``It's a really volatile fire,'' Sandi Wells, Ventura County Fire Department Not to be confused with Ventura Fire Department. The Ventura County Fire Department (VCFD) provides fire protection and emergency response services for the unincorporated areas of Ventura County, California, and for six other cities within the county. spokeswoman, said of the Ojai blaze. ``The wind is gusting up to 60 to 70 mph in the canyons.'' The fire broke out at 8:26 p.m. Tuesday and quickly spread, fueled by dry conditions and ample brush from a rainless autumn, high winds and the rough terrain dotted with about 100 homes, officials said. About 35 residents spent Tuesday night at Nordhoff High School, where the Red Cross established a shelter. By mid-morning Wednesday, firefighting 1. firefighting - What sysadmins have to do to correct sudden operational problems. An opposite of hacking. "Been hacking your new newsreader?" "No, a power glitch hosed the network and I spent the whole afternoon fighting fires." 2. crews from across the region were on the scene, along with six helicopters, dozens of engines and an air tactical unit An organization of troops, aircraft, or ships that is intended to serve as a single unit in combat. It may include service units required for its direct support. . By mid-morning the fire was restricted to Horn Canyon, north of Thacher School and by 12:30 p.m, the fire was burning into the Los Padres
Not to be confused with San Diego Padres. forest away from the city of Ojai, officials said. Highway 150 - the main road in and out of the closely knit Adj. 1. closely knit - held together as by social or cultural ties; "a close-knit family"; "close-knit little villages"; "the group was closely knit" close-knit close - close in relevance or relationship; "a close family"; "we are all... community of actors, artists and working-class residents - was closed, but business continued as usual as crews battled the fire, and charred hillsides could seen from neighborhoods. At Ojai Lumber Co., about three miles from the flames, workers felt the ash and winds rustling through the city. ``Earlier the wind was blowing pretty hard at 8 this morning and was substantially blowing ash and stuff,'' said Shawn DeSoto, customer service representative at the lumber company. ``Right now it's not too bad.'' In all, 45 residents were forced to be evacuated Tuesday night in the Koenigstein Road area, the point of origin of the fire. And 50 to 75 residents from 25 homes were evacuated at 4 a.m. from the area of Reeves Road, where one home was reported damaged. An advisory was issued for about 25 residents in the area of McAndrews Road, officials said. Ventura County Sheriff Bob Brooks declared the county a local disaster area Wednesday because of the two fires, and forwarded the proclamation to Gov. Gray Davis, which is the first step toward qualifying the county for financial assistance. Among those who were evacuated at 4 a.m. Wednesday were 25 independent-living residents of the St. Joseph Health and Retirement Center, a 35-acre facility at the base of the mountains. The center relocated its 28 hospital patients to the dining room. ``You could smell the smoke. There was a huge amount of smoke from the fire itself. It was wafting down into this area,'' said 71-year-old Cosmas Sieward. ``I was concerned for the elderly people,'' Sieward said. ``I was afraid the smoke might harm them.'' Resident Carl Christensen said that his father and brother had built the Forgea couple's Sisar Road home 35 years ago, and that the couple fled with only the clothes on their backs - and a special bottle of wine Gloria had purchased to celebrate earning her master's degree master's degree n. An academic degree conferred by a college or university upon those who complete at least one year of prescribed study beyond the bachelor's degree. Noun 1. . He said the couple had lived there for 10 years, and within minutes of seeing the fire break out they were forced to flee. ``The fire came so quickly, it literally forced him off the roof,'' Christensen said about Tom Forgea, who had been hosing his house down against the flames. ``It was just too hot. The smoke was so dense that it was too difficult to see. ``This is just a terrible experience,'' Christensen said. ``That's about as simple as I can put it.'' The Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. contributed to this story. CAPTION(S): 4 photos, map PHOTO (1 -- color) Tom Forgea waters the remains of his Ojai house Wednesday, after a fire reduced his home of 10 years to smoldering smol·der also smoul·der intr.v. smol·dered, smol·der·ing, smol·ders 1. To burn with little smoke and no flame. 2. wreckage. (2) A Ventura County fire helicopter, one of six aircraft assigned to a 3,000-acre fire in the Ojai area, scouts the blaze's progress. (3) Ventura County Firefighter Jeff Norcott hurries along, hose in hand, while a house burns nearby Tuesday evening in Ojai. (4) Mike Busch Michael Anthony Busch (born July 7, 1968, in Davenport, Iowa) was a Major League Baseball third baseman. Busch is an alumnus of Iowa State University. Drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 4th round of the 1990 MLB amateur draft, Busch would make his Major League waters his landscaping as the Ojai fire threatens his home Wednesday. Busch's house was spared damage. Michael Owen
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