Like Clockwork, Fire Worries Follow Heatwave
Monday, Jun 7, 2010 | Updated 11:45 AM PDT
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PASADENA, CA - SEPTEMBER 4: Smoke envelops the forest in the path of the 241-square-mile Station Fire near its eastern front deep in the Angeles National Forest on September 4, 2009 northeast of Pasadena, California. The 10-day-old blaze is the biggest wildfire in Los Angeles County history. Officials believe it was started by an arsonist along Angeles Crest Highway near La Canada, California. If caught, the suspect could be charged with first-degree murder for the deaths of two firefighters whose truck rolled down an 800-foot mountainside as they retreated from flames. In its march across the San Gabriel Mountains, the Station Fire has destroyed 76 homes, mostly cabins. The fire is about 42 percent contained and firefighters expect to have it fully surrounded by defensible fire lines in mid-September. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
Local firefighters are preparing for the increased risk of wildfires this summer and are asking residents to do the same.
As the weather gets warmer and grass dries out, the likelihood of wildfire jumps. This summer will be particularly high-risk due to unusually tall, thick grass crop this spring, according to Cal Fire.
Cal Fire is hiring and training additional firefighters, and extra firefighting aircraft will be phased in as the summer progresses.
Residents are urged to keep their properties free of brush and to create a 100-foot defensible space around homes and other structures.
For more information, visit www.readyforwildfire.org.
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