Santa Barbara wildfire expands, more losses

Please pray for the people in the fire's path but say a special prayer for the firefighters trying to stop it.

More than 2,300 firefighters were on the scene along with 246 engines, 14 air tankers and 15 helicopters. A DC-10 jumbo jet tanker capable of dumping huge loads of retardant began making runs on the fire Friday afternoon.

Santa Barbara wildfire expands, more losses
By RAQUEL MARIA DILLON, Associated Press Writer

Friday, May 8, 2009

(05-08) 14:13 PDT Santa Barbara, Calif. (AP) --

A wildfire raging along mountain slopes burned more houses Friday as it expanded along a five-mile front above normally serene coastal communities where more than 30,000 people have been forced from their homes.

Authorities warned another 23,000 people to be ready to leave at a moment's notice.

Columns of smoke boiled off the Santa Ynez Mountains after a fierce overnight battle as the 4-day-old, 3,500-acre blaze repeated its pattern of relative calm in daylight and explosive behavior when winds arrive in the evenings.

"Literally last night, all hell broke loose," Santa Barbara Fire Chief Andrew DiMizio said Friday morning, recounting firefighters' efforts to put out roof fires and keep flames out of the city proper.

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Santa Barbara wildfire expands, more losses

Tom Cruise stalked by Iraq vet to get him to help Iraq veterans

Iraq vet gunman held at Los Angeles hospital

The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Dec 16, 2008 9:23:50 EST

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— An Iraq war veteran who waved a gun on a Santa Barbara highway and was repeatedly found outside actor Tom Cruise’s home is on psychiatric hold at a veterans hospital.

A judge on Monday issued a warrant for Edward Van Tassel to be returned to jail when he is released from the hospital in Los Angeles. It was not clear when he would be released.

The judge also reset Van Tassel’s bail at $250,000, up from $50,000.

Van Tassel is charged with several weapons violations stemming from a Nov. 3 episode on Highway 101.

After his arrest, he went to a veterans facility that the judge believed would keep him locked up for evaluation. Instead, Van Tassel left the facility three times this month to deliver a letter to Cruise asking him to help Iraq war veterans.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/12/ap_HighwayGunman_121608/

Wildfire claims 100 homes in Montecito, Santa Barbara

Wildfire claims 100 homes in Montecito, Santa Barbara
By Times staff writers2:02 p.m.
Firefighters battle flames that have charred 2,500 acres and driven thousands from luxury neighborhoods.
• L.A., Ventura counties get wildfire warnings
• Stepping up to help fire victims
• Wildfire fears of the rich and famous

California firefighters battling blazes before heatwave

California firefighters battling blazes before heatwave


LOS ANGELES (AFP) — California firefighters were racing to make inroads against wildfires raging across the state on Monday before the arrival of a forecast record heatwave later this week, officials said.

More than 19,000 firefighters are battling some 330 active fires across California. Nearly 1,800 blazes have erupted since June 20, scorching around 597,000 acres (241,600 hectares) according to latest figures.

The frontlines of the battle are two separate out-of-control wildfires threatening thousands of homes which are burning in the Los Padres National Forest near the coastal town of Santa Barbara and the tourist haven of Big Sur.
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Please pray for the firefighters.

California fires threaten Big Sur, Santa Barbara County

California fires threaten Big Sur, Santa Barbara County
Story Highlights
The Gap Fire in Santa Barbara County declared the state's top priority Friday

Fire has charred 3,000 acres, threatens town of Goleta

Some 1,400 Big Sur residents ordered to leave homes due to Basin Complex Fire

Volunteer dies north of San Francisco; more than 1,700 wildfires in last two weeks

BIG SUR, California (CNN) -- Fast-moving flames early Friday burned the steep mountainsides a mile from homes on the northern edge of Goleta, California, near Santa Barbara.


Mandatory evacuations ordered Thursday morning for mountain home communities outside Goleta were widened Thursday night as winds kicked up after sundown, making it tougher to fight the fire, a state fire spokesman said.

Farther north up the California coast, 1,400 residents of Big Sur were ordered to leave their homes because of the Basin Complex Fire, which has burned about 65,000 acres of the Los Padres National Forest in the last two weeks. At least 20 homes have been destroyed.

Besides forcing residents from their homes, the fire also is likely to deter tourists, who would usually flock to the area for the July Fourth holiday.

"I'm sure the season is just toast," Kurt Mayer, who stayed to defend his Big Sur Deli despite mandatory evacuation orders, told The Associated Press. "Usually the busiest time is July and August, so I'm sure it's just going to be zero."
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