October 13, 2008 Wildfires force frantic evacuations near LA; 2 die

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Two huge wildfires driven by strong Santa Ana
winds threatened neighborhoods near Los Angeles on Monday, forcing
frantic evacuations on smoke- and traffic-choked highways, burning
several mobile homes and causing at least two deaths.

One fatality was a man who appeared to have been a transient
living in a makeshift shelter, authorities said. A motorist died
around midday Monday in a head-on crash on a freeway entrance ramp
as traffic tried to turn around to escape flames.

Firefighters were struggling with a 5,000-acre blaze in the San
Fernando Valley's northeastern corner when a new blaze erupted at
midmorning a few miles to the west in mountains above the Porter
Ranch area and quickly grew to 2,000 acres as wind blew up to 45
mph, with gusts reaching 70 mph.

"It is a blowtorch we can't get in front of," said Los Angeles
County fire Inspector Frank Garrido.

Fire officials could not immediately estimate how many homes in
Porter Ranch were in the fire's path. Fire officials alerted other
communities as far south as Malibu, 20 miles away.

The first fire was burning where neighborhoods abut rugged
canyonlands below the mountainous Angeles National Forest. About
1,200 people evacuated because of the Marek Fire, which was just 5
percent contained.

Los Angeles County fire Capt. Mark Savage said 37 or 38 mobile
homes were

"We could have had an army there and it would not have stopped
it," Los Angeles Fire Department Battalion Chief Mario Rueda said.
"Wind is king here. It's dictating everything we are doing."

Olive View-UCLA Medical Center moved eight patients to other
hospitals. Spokeswoman Carla Nino said the six newborns, a
heart-bypass patient and another patient described as "medically
fragile" - were all on ventilators and were the most difficult to
transport.

About 180 patients remained at the hospital Monday as officials
waited to determine if the Marek Fire would actually approach.

The dry and warm Santa Ana winds typically blow between October
and February. As they whistle through Southern California canyons
and valleys, they accelerate, drying out vegetation and hastening
the spread of any fires that erupt.

"This is what we feared the most," said Savage. "The winds
that were expected - they have arrived."

Flames jumped the Foothill Freeway, which was closed in both
directions for about a three-mile stretch in northern Los Angeles
between the 118 Freeway and Interstate 5 amid the morning rush
hour, officials said.

"That was quite a jump. That's an eight-lane fire break," said
fire spokesman Inspector Paul Hartwell.

A motorist was killed on a freeway ramp after vehicles started
turning around and exiting to avoid the fire, Garrido said.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District advised Monday
that air quality may be unhealthful due to the fires and urged
people to avoid outdoor activities.

The Red Cross said about 500 people registered at an evacuation
center at San Fernando High School. Agency spokesman Nick Samaniego
said some evacuees had seen news footage of their homes burning.

"You can imagine, it's a devastating situation," he said. "A
lot of people on pins and needles waiting to hear news about their
communities."

Most schools in the area were closed Monday.

Also Monday, a blaze charred more than half of San Francisco
Bay's largest island but spared scores of historical structures,
including an immigration station that was the first stop for
millions of immigrants, mostly from China, in the early 1900s. The
Angel Island wildfire was about 75 percent contained Monday
afternoon, and the cause remains under investigation.
---
Associated Press writer Thomas Watkins contributed to this
report.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)