Calif. Fires Rage Despite Calmer Winds

Thousands More Evacuated In SoCal As Wildfires Now Burn In Five Counties

(CBS/AP) 

Early Sunday, the wind pushed flames dangerously close to a church and adjacent mobile home park in the Olinda Village area north of Yorba Linda, but firefighters were able to beat it back and only one mobile home was lost.

Billy Bagsby, a prison inmate firefighter with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said the flames suddenly shifted direction around 2 a.m.

"It was like the church was protecting itself," Bagsby said.

That fire had destroyed 119 homes in the communities of Corona, Yorba Linda and the Anaheim Hills area of Anaheim. In addition, 50 units of an apartment complex burned, Orange County fire spokeswoman Angela Garbiso said. Flames also destroyed the main building of a high school in the Orange County city of Brea.

At one point a firefighter battling the apartment blaze ran down a street with two Pomeranian dogs - one white and one brown - under his arms and placed them in a TV news truck, then dashed back to the fire. The firefighter, who would not give his name, said he rescued the dogs from a burning apartment.

Apartment resident Melody Ma, 24, said she took her sister to piano lessons Saturday morning, when the fire's smoke appeared to be far away, then found she could not return home.

"There's things you can't replace like photos and stuff," said Ma, bursting into tears in a shelter.

Evacuees could only watch the wildfires from a distance and wait to learn the fate of their homes and possessions.

"I'm hoping my house will not burn down, but if it burns down that's my life, right? I've got to start from scratch again," said Jack Chen, 56, of Yorba Linda as he sat on a cot in a school gym.

Evacuee Gail Slagel, 61, said she spent Saturday watching flames in the area around her house from the safety of a Yorba Linda strip mall.

"I just kept sitting there saying, 'Please, please, please, give me a home to come home to, don't let it be gone," she said as she sat outside a restaurant with her ash-covered poodle.

Capt. Leonard Grill, a 20-year veteran of the Riverside County Fire Department, watched for flaring embers in a Yorba Linda neighborhood late Saturday.

"It's gotten worse and worse every year. I can't keep track of them any more," Grill said of recent destructive wildfires. "These used to be the out-of-the-ordinary fires, once-in-a-career kind of fires. Now they're every year."

(AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

(A wildfire burns to the edge of a Yorba Linda, Calif., neighborhood Saturday, Nov. 15, 2008.)

Six firefighters from various agencies were injured in the blaze.

The Devastation At Sylmar

About 50 miles to the northwest, a fire in the Sylmar area of Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley had spread across nearly 15 square miles and had destroyed more than 500 homes and 11 commercial buildings.

This morning Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa spoke of the ruins at the Oakridge Mobile Home Park: "I can tell you that after reviewing that site, all you see is charred wood, metal, bricks. What you see is a devastation that I've never seen before. And our hearts are out to all of those people who have lost their homes.

"Remember, many of these people were elderly. Some were disabled. A lot of them were on fixed incomes. They don't have a home anymore."

He promised the L.A. Housing Authority would work with the displaced.

"We're going to rebuild," he said. "Make no mistake."

Among those who lost homes in the Sylmar fire was Linda Pogacnik, who said that after decades of driving a school bus full of noisy kids, she finally bought her dream house at "the Beverly Hills of mobile home parks."

"It had this beautiful oval bathtub, and just a few nights ago I lit candles and put on soft music and got in," she said. "The moon was full, and it made it look like the eucalyptus tree outside had little white lights."

She left with only her dogs, some clothes and a few essentials. Left behind were photography books and scrapbooking materials that she said were "going to be all I did for the rest of my life."

By midmorning Sunday, firefighters reported the Sylmar fire 35 percent contained.

Containment Of Tea Fire Continues

About 90 miles northwest of Sylmar, a 3-square-mile fire in the upscale Santa Barbara County community of Montecito was 75 contained Sunday morning.

County spokesman William Boyer said 106 homes were destroyed in the city of Santa Barbara and 77 burned in adjacent Montecito. He said the final total could reach 200, many of them multimillion-dollar homes with ocean views.

[observer2020]

Rain falls upon the just and upon the unjust. So do fires, earthquakes, tornedoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, all sorts of things. These are not God''s judgement, anymore than war, pestilence, famine and death are. These are, however, times to be agents of God''s love and mercy by trying to help the afflicted.
Posted by violist47

Well said violist47! Much better than the epitome of the Christian "gop" poster. We ALL need to help out however we can; money always helps but is difficult for most of us right now to find "extra" cash. But sending prayers and good thoughts costs nothing and does help. Not like the dark clouds that gop_will_Win keeps sending to those that don''t think exactly like it does. Open your mind and heart and good things will come your way.

[myopinion381]

God is still angry with the sinner liberals and will continue the fires until sufficient prayer has been done. Posted by gop_will_Win at 08:38 AM

Considering a major portion of the homes that have been lost so far were in a retirement area, how do you figure those people have sinned?

[gop_will_win]

God is still angry with the sinner liberals and will continue the fires until sufficient prayer has been done.

[wl7bzh]

Everyone creates an environment where good and bad things can happen, but the purpose of the environment is to produce based upon the wills and charactar of those who are in it.

Posted by pensacola98 at 10:55 AM : Nov 16, 2008

Huh? this makes no sense. Suggest you quit walking down the middle of Hwy 98.

[frankinaz]

I lived in California for 22 years, and unfortunately, fires, earthquakes, landslides, and other hazards are the price for living in a nice climate with an ocean nearby. Although I feel sorry for those who lost loved ones and property in these wildfires, people chose to build and live in areas where there are inherent hazards, and some of these these hazards are natural and occur in cycles. May those affected all recover from their suffering and losses.

[petro49l]

FEMA must grant money to the State of California for the purchases of vehicles, aircraft, equipment, supplies (chemicals for fires), and planning funds. The tax money should prevent forest fire by containing the problem. FEMA and the Department of the Interior should place fire breaks throughout the State. If not, wild forest fires will destroy the natural beauty.

[violist47]

Rain falls upon the just and upon the unjust. So do fires, earthquakes, tornedoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, all sorts of things. These are not God''s judgement,anymore than war, pestilence, famine and death are. These are, however, times to be agents of God''s love and mercy by trying to help the afflicted.

[manstantrust]

Just pray, folks, pray, pray and pray again and do penance. Advent starts November 29, right after thanksgiving. Show your gratefulness by refraining from sin and from totally ignoring his teachings. Listen to the Holy Spirit that was given into you when you were first created in your mothers womb, renounce the evil mind that dictates rebellion.
May God bless our country and nation with His Grace and Mercy.

[musethalia]

Too bad there isn''''t a way to replace those houses as well as the houses that get blown away by hurricanes and tornadoes with houses being demolished in other parts of the country. Can''''t someone dismantle unwanted houses and send them to devastated areas for people to rebuild? Wouldn''''t it be great if something like that existed? It does. The Benefactor Project

Posted by bladdy10

Habitat for Humanity is an awesome organization similar to what you''re speaking of - Donations (extra construction supplies, furniture, cabinets, flooring etc and can be purchased by the public at a discount rate - and they are just that - non-profit donations, & obviously a tax credit for those who donate) the proceeds are used to assist people - I believe there are strict situational background checks (so to speak) done to weed out those looking for a free ride, and then they build homes for those in dire need (i.e. the person who has had tradgety strike, like paralys from a wreck, was the bread winner, lived in a multi-story home that''s no longer functional, etc) and then gives them the deed and keys to a one story w/ handicap accessories. It''s awesome.

[musethalia]

No, the liberals are just poking fun at the Christian fundamentalists that always claim it was an act of God''''s judgment against some unchristian thing.

Posted by mtminds

you forgot the word ''extreme''. Not every Christian believes there''s a catastrophic event due to someone''s act of being ''un-Christian - sometimes people are just stupid, do stupid things and it leads to a bad outcome for a lot of others. Why does religion have to be brought in to everything???

[mtminds]

No, the liberals are just poking fun at the Christian fundamentalists that always claim it was an act of God''s judgment against some unchristian thing.

[httpwwwnews]

Most of the recent So Cal fires are from human activity; downed power lines in high winds, camp fires that get away, catalytic converter sparks, etc. The biggest cause of fires is arsonists and thieves. The arsonists start um then sit back getting their sick thrills watching. The thieves sneak in and loot houses after the residents are evacuated before the fires take the homes.

[sensiblejack]

Liberals are the worst haters on the planet...they hide behind shrieks and wails ( their chosen method of self expression) espousing tolerance.....what they really mean is tolerance of views similar to their own.

If you have a view that differs from theirsw...watch out the hate filled speech will fly ( and be dutifully ignored by the media

[ardiva1]

Wish I could just wiggle my nose and get everything back to the way it was before the fire.

Blessings to all in Calif.

[rushlimbaug4]

In some religions, the voice saying "God Punished You or Them" , is said to actually be the voice of Satan.

Posted by pensacola98 at 10:55 AM : Nov 16, 2008

It is obvious you have not read the Old Testament, but I will give you a free pass since you have been such a loyal listener in the past.

These fires will surgically strike sinners. Any Questions!!!$$??

[pensacola98]

Fire ? Flood ? Hurricane ? Acts of God ?

The results of God''s effort have no connections to God''s intentions.

Everyone creates an environment where good and bad things can happen, but the purpose of the environment is to produce based upon the wills and charactar of those who are in it.

God''s creation is no different.

Every creation or environment offers relationship and conditions.

Each of us has the choice what type of relationship to have in this situation. I choose not to condemn my brothers in southern California, but instead to offer aid and encouragement.

In some religions, the voice saying "God Punished You or Them" , is said to actually be the voice of Satan.

[czmdm]

Having lived through Hurricane Wilma on Cozumel Island I have seen first hand the tragedy of total loss of property. Things of course, can be replaced, but the memories they hold cannot.

My families heart goes out to all you folks in trouble out there. Stay safe and try to remember it will get better.


_____________________________________________________

Obviously these terrible fires in California are a sure sign of God''''s wrath on Californians for their denying homosexuals their due rights as citizens and taxpayers.---n8yvn29

n8yvn29 you are a pathetic dolt with no human qualities or values. What is wrong with you hateful people who laugh or make political jokes about the misfortune of people? What is your country coming to that everytime something horrid happens half of the bloggers take delight in watching others suffer? It is shameful.

[bladdy10]

Too bad there isn''t a way to replace those houses as well as the houses that get blown away by hurricanes and tornadoes with houses being demolished in other parts of the country. Can''t someone dismantle unwanted houses and send them to devastated areas for people to rebuild? Wouldn''t it be great if something like that existed? It does. The Benefactor Project

[blackyowe]

We are keeping you in our prayers California! Our hearts ache for you in this time of crisis!