Fierce winds push massive wildfire towards thousands of LA homes
Wind-powered wildfire forces over 10000 people to leave their homes near Los Angeles. Fast-moving flames destroy dozens of buildings while firefighters work against harsh weather conditions
A fast-moving wildfire (driven by strong santa-ana winds) forced mass-evacuation northwest of Los Angeles yesterday. Over 10000 residents had to leave their homes as flames moved towards populated areas
Captain Tony McHale described the fire-fighting efforts: wind gusts reached 80-mph making containment super-hard. The blaze jumped across neighborhoods; burning embers flew 2-miles ahead of the main fire-front
Its like trying to put out a blowtorch with a squirt gun
By late-thursday evening the wildfire had eaten through 20000-acres of land destroying many structures in its path. The LA Times counted more than 90 destroyed homes while about 30000 people stay in the fires potential path
The weather service put up a red-flag warning thatʼll last till tomorrow. This years total burned area in California is already 3-times bigger than last years numbers. Scientists say its because wet winters helped plants grow thick which then dried up in record-hot summer creating perfect fire conditions
The US has seen 8.1-million acres burned this year which is way more than the usual 7-million acre average from past 10-yrs. Local authorities continue working to protect homes and businesses from the advancing flames
