FIRE SEASON NOT OVER YET MORE SANTA ANA WINDS EXPECTED SOON.Byline: Susan Abram 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, - The recent rains that drenched drench tr.v. drenched, drench·ing, drench·es 1. To wet through and through; soak. 2. To administer a large oral dose of liquid medicine to (an animal). 3. thirsty hillsides and caused some flooding in the past few days may have alleviated fire risk, but the season is not over yet, officials said. ``We're never really out of fire season in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, ,'' said Mike McCormick, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Fire Department's North County region. ``We're expecting Santa Anas after this weekend that could definitely affect us here. We'll be right back on edge. Every day is absolutely different. We had all those floods, and now we could move back into fires.'' High winds and low humidity levels led to a series of red-flag fire warnings in October by the National Weather Service, in the forest areas between the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys, prompting increased fire-crew support in the area. In July, the Pine, Foothill and Crown fires 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. an estimated 34,000 acres in and around the Angeles National Forest The Angeles National Forest (ANF) was established by executive order on December 20, 1892 as the San Gabriel Timberland Reserve. It covers over 2,600 km² (650,000 acres) and is located in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, just north of the metropolitan area of Los in northern Los Angeles County. Officials said those blazes were largely wind-driven and consumed several thousand acres within a matter of hours. Fire danger levels in the Angeles National Forest were extreme because of drought and heavy, dry brush, resulting in the closure of about 90 percent of the forest. Fuel moisture levels - fire fuel includes brush, vegetation and trees - hit record lows before summer officially ended. Though the Angeles was able reopen after heavy October rains, some restrictions remain in place, such as bans on camp fires, camp stoves and smoking in the forest. While the recent rains helped to saturate sat·u·rate v. Abbr. sat. 1. To imbue or impregnate thoroughly. 2. To soak, fill, or load to capacity. 3. To cause a substance to unite with the greatest possible amount of another substance. dry brush and increase moisture content, dry wind may zap it right out again, fire officials said. ``We're not out of the woods yet,'' said Los Angeles County Chief Deputy Gary Lockhart. ``What we want to watch really closely is the live field moisture. It takes time for fuel to absorb the moisture. You get one or two days of Santa Ana winds Santa Ana Winds may refer to: 1. Santa Ana wind, a local Southern California reference to Föhn winds, a meteorological phenomenon occurring as a layer of wind is forced over a mountain range -- drying the air -- which then passes over the crest and begins to move downslope -- and the fuel will still want to burn. But we're looking really good compared to last year. We're hoping these rains break the drought.'' Severe fire season begins in May and ends in December. Fire officials then move into swift water emergency mode. Susan Abram, (661) 257-5257 susan.abram(at)dailynews.com |
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