Station Fire

The Station fire in the Angeles National Forest continues to burn out of control. As of this morning it had consumed more than 125,000 acres and was only 5% contained. Initially, it moved south towards the foothill communities of La Cañada and La Crescenta, prompting mandatory evacuations the day after it began. With triple digit temperatures and single-digit humidity, the fire began spreading in all directions over the weekend. There are now evacuation orders in Altadena, Tujunga, Acton and many other communities bordering Angeles National Forest.

The fire has prompted school closures throughout the San Gabriel and San Fernando Valleys due to poor air quality. Some of those high schools will be serving as evacuation centers, offering displaced residents a place to go if there home is in danger.

Some employers are also taking precautions and sending their employees home. Descanso Gardens, normally open 364 days a year, has closed its gates two days in a row. "It's absolutely not healthy to be working in conditions like this," one employee remarked.

Thankfully, no homes in La Canada were destroyed by the wildfire. "It is purely miraculous," one resident stated, "that my home and my neighbors' homes were not lost in this fire." As of right now, though, 53 structures have been consumed and that total is likely to rise.

The Station fire is not the only fire burning through southern California right now, either. The Oak Glen fire and the Pendleton fire in San Bernardino County are growing larger every day. The Cottonwood fire near Hemet is also threatening communities in the Inland Empire.

The expected date of containment was pushed back this weekend from Sept. 8th to Sept. 15th. Because the fire is so large and the terrain in which it is burning is so rugged firefighters have had a hard time keeping up. But when weather conditions allow, firefighters have been lighting backfires to exhaust the Station fire's fuel supply and to hopefully get it under control.

The extremely dry conditions and high heat is expected to continue throughout the rest of the week making it hard to contain the fires in Los Angeles and San Bernardino Counties. Officials are advising that people stay indoors as much as possible and limit physical activity until the air quality improves.