FIRE IMPERILS HOMES; BLAZE SPARKS FEAR IN PORTER RANCH.Byline: Deborah Sullivan Daily News Staff Writer A massive brush fire scorched scorch v. scorched, scorch·ing, scorch·es v.tr. 1. To burn superficially so as to discolor or damage the texture of. See Synonyms at burn1. 2. up to 600 acres of dry hillsides above Porter Ranch on Sunday, as winds up to 50 mph whipped 20-foot flames perilously close to homes. The fire, which started about 11 a.m. at Tampa Avenue north of Sesnon Boulevard, spread west through the Santa Susana Mountains The Santa Susana Mountains are a transverse range of mountains in southern California, north of the city of Los Angeles, in the United States. The range runs east-west separating the San Fernando Valley and Simi Valley on its south from Santa Clara River Valley to the north and , creeping within several yards of homes in the far north portion of Porter Ranch. ``It burned from the top of the hill to the bottom in about 30 minutes,'' said resident Jerry Colburn, whose back yard abuts the burn area. ``It kind of jumped around because there were embers being blown around all over the place.'' The arid, 78-degree air allowed winds of 35 mph to 50 mph to fan the flames through brush parched parch v. parched, parch·ing, parch·es v.tr. 1. To make extremely dry, especially by exposure to heat: The midsummer sun parched the earth. by a season of low rainfall. While 400 to 600 acres burned, no injuries or structure damage occurred, and the blaze was fully contained at 5 p.m. just east of Winnetka, said Los Angeles Fire Department The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), also known as the Los Angeles City Fire Department to distinguish it from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. It is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Los Angeles. spokesman Brian Humphrey. But residents spent several anxious hours Sunday afternoon watching thick brown smoke rise off the charred hillside and debating whether to leave or stay. ``I am very worried,'' said Alex Henson, 46, a Kilfinan Street resident whose home was also on the front line of the fire. ``We've been here four years and this is the first time we've had this kind of fire here,'' he said, watching bulldozers clear dried grass as burning cinders cin·der n. 1. a. A burned or partly burned substance, such as coal, that is not reduced to ashes but is incapable of further combustion. b. A partly charred substance that can burn further but without flame. stung his eyes. ``That's why I'm trying to hang on as long as possible. If worst comes to worst, I will have to take what I can and run.'' More than 300 firefighters from the city Fire Department and the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. and Ventura county fire departments 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. attacked the blaze on the ground, while five helicopters dropped water on the flames or scouted out the fire's path, Los Angeles fire Capt. Tim McDonell said. The Fire Department did not order evacuations, but Henson and other residents stood ready to flee if the flames flared out of control. ``There's a firebreak fire·break n. A strip of cleared or plowed land used to stop the spread of a fire. Also called fireguard. firebreak Noun a strip of open land in a forest to stop the advance of a fire , and between that and the tile roofs the fire couldn't get through,'' said Dan Rigney, 45, a resident of Kilfinan Street. ``But it's the kind of thing where you get the baby pictures out and you get things ready to go just in case,'' said his wife, Jamie, also 45. Residents in nearby neighborhoods also prepared for the worst. ``I put my pictures and clothes in the car,'' said Nenet Kureghian, a resident of Eagle Ridge Eagle Ridge can have the following meanings: Places
Nonetheless, fire officials were concerned Sunday afternoon that the fire was not controlled and still posed a potential threat to nearby neighborhoods. Because of the steep terrain and high winds, firefighters could not attack it head on, but fought along its flanks, trying to reduce and contain it. As firefighters monitored the fire through the Santa Susana Santa Susana can refer to several places:
n. A furnace used to reduce naturally occurring forms of calcium carbonate to lime. limekiln Noun a kiln in which calcium carbonate is burned to produce quicklime Noun 1. Canyon Road and High Glen Way, others were stationed in Brown's Canyon and in neighborhoods below the Ronald Reagan Freeway in case the fire took a turn southward, fire officials said. ``We're trying to get engine companies at least an hour ahead of the fire, instead of trying to chase it,'' McDonell said. Their efforts were successful, and the department pronounced the fire contained at 5 p.m. Jackie Abkian of Porter Ranch said the flames burned up to her home, but added that she was confident firefighters would keep them at bay. ``We were worried, but those firefighters were right in front of our house,'' she said. ``They told us that if there was any danger they would protect us. We trusted them and didn't panic. Now we're OK. They knew exactly where the fire was heading. Thank God for them.'' THE DANGER The fire danger today is expected to be high, the Los Angeles Fire Department reported, due to the same high temperatures and gusty gust·y adj. gust·i·er, gust·i·est 1. Blowing in or marked by gusts: a gusty storm. 2. Characterized by sudden outbursts. winds that fanned the fire above Porter Ranch on Sunday. The National Weather Service predicted temperatures in the mid-70s today, with winds between 15 mph and 25 mph, said weather specialist Stuart Seto. Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey said Sunday rated a high fire-danger warning. However, he said, the weather was not dry enough to prompt a ``red flag'' alert, which triggers pre-deployment of extra firefighters in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. . Daily News Staff Writer Lee Condon contributed to this story. CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box, map PHOTO (1 -- color) Los Angeles firefighters survey a brush fire Sunday that briefly threatened Porter Ranch neighborhoods. Gus Ruelas/Daily News (2 -- color) Alex Henson squints from the dense smoke Sunday in Porter Ranch. Tom Mendoza/Daily News Map: Porter Ranch site of fire Box: The danger (see text) |
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