Ian
priscilla 1California Wildfires of October 2007
November 5th 2007 12:43
The California wildfires of October 2007 are a series of wildfires that began burning across Southern California on October 20; the massive firestorm prompted the largest evacuation in American peacetime history - four times the number evacuated from Hurricane Katrina. At least 1,500 homes were destroyed and over 270,000 acres of land have burned from Santa Barbara County to the Mexican border.
As of October 24, 18 active fires were burning in the region. Ten people have died and at least 70 others have been injured.
Californian Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in seven California counties where fires were burning. President George W. Bush has declared that an emergency exists in the State of California and has ordered federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts. Over 6,000 fire-fighters are working to fight the blazes; they are aided by units of the United States Armed Forces and United States National Guard.
The major contributing factors to the extreme fire conditions are the drought in Southern California, the hot weather, and the unusually strong Santa Ana winds. The winds are believed to have knocked down power lines, triggering several of the fires.
One fire is known to be the result of arson; one was started by an overturned semi-truck. The causes of the remaining fires remain under investigation.
*These images used with permission from Damn Funny Pictures.
**This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation Licence. It uses material from the Wikipedia article California wildfires of October 2007.
As of October 24, 18 active fires were burning in the region. Ten people have died and at least 70 others have been injured.
Californian Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in seven California counties where fires were burning. President George W. Bush has declared that an emergency exists in the State of California and has ordered federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts. Over 6,000 fire-fighters are working to fight the blazes; they are aided by units of the United States Armed Forces and United States National Guard.
The major contributing factors to the extreme fire conditions are the drought in Southern California, the hot weather, and the unusually strong Santa Ana winds. The winds are believed to have knocked down power lines, triggering several of the fires.
One fire is known to be the result of arson; one was started by an overturned semi-truck. The causes of the remaining fires remain under investigation.
*These images used with permission from Damn Funny Pictures.
**This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation Licence. It uses material from the Wikipedia article California wildfires of October 2007.
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