Page 4 - ARUBA TODAY

A4 U.S. NEWS
Wednesday 6 december 2017

California suburbs again under siege from wind-driven fires

By KRYSTA FAURIA kilometers) in a matter of
BRIAN MELLEY hours. It was fanned by dry
Associated Press Santa Ana winds clocked
VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — at well over 60 mph (96
For second time in two kph) that grounded fire-
months, wind-driven fires fighting helicopters and
tore through California planes.
communities in the middle Lisa Kermode ignored the
of the night, leaving rows first evacuation alert that
of homes and a psychiat- buzzed on her phone when
ric hospital in ruins Tuesday it said the fire was 15 miles
and sending tens of thou- way. But the flames were
sands of people fleeing for nearly on top of her an hour
their lives. later when she rounded
There were no immediate up her three children, still
reports of any deaths or in their pajamas, and told
serious injuries in the blazes them to grab some jeans.
burning in Southern Califor- They returned Tuesday to
nia’s Ventura County, on find the home in ashes, in-
the edge of Los Angeles cluding a Christmas tree
and in inland San Bernardi- and the presents they had
no County. just bought.
The Ventura County wild- “We got knots in our stom-
fire broke out Monday and ach coming back up here,” Flames consume a home on Via Arroyo as a wildfire rages in Ventura, Calif., on Tuesday, Dec. 5,
grew wildly to nearly 80 Kermode said. “We lost ev- 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
square miles (207 square erything, everything, all our clothes, anything that was important to us. All our fam- numbers that are going to
ily heirlooms — it’s not sort be evacuated, as we’re
of gone, it’s completely seeing now. And coun-
gone.” ties and cities are going to
A smaller fire erupted on have to expand their bud-
the northern edge of Los gets,” said Char Miller, a
Angeles, threatening the professor of environmental
Sylmar and Lakeview Ter- analysis at Pomona Col-
race neighborhoods, lege who has written ex-
Located in the Riu Antilles Resort (Formerly the Westin Resort) where residents scrambled tensively wildfires. “These
FREE TRANSPORTATION TO THE CASINO FROM ALL to get out as heavy smoke fires are not just fast and
HIGH RISE AND LOW RISE HOTELS AND TIMESHARES. billowed over the city, cre- furious, but they’re really
ating a health hazard for expensive to fight.”
CALL 525-7777 FOR MORE INFORMATION millions of people. The early official count was
LIVE POKER Just eight weeks ago, that at least 150 structures
wildfires that broke out in burned in the Ventura
Northern California and its County fire, but it was sure
GAMES START 8 PM TO THE WEE HOURS wine country killed 44 peo- to go higher. Mansions and
ple and destroyed 8,900 modest homes alike were
homes and other buildings. in flames. The Hawaiian Vil-
1-2.....2-5......5-5 1-3.....2-5......5-5 Fires aren’t typical in South- lage Apartments burned
ern California this time of to the ground. The Vista
$100 HIGH HAND BONUSES EVERY HOUR year but can break out del Mar Hospital, which
OVER $20,000 PER WEEK GIVEN OUT IN HIGH HAND BONUSES when dry vegetation and treats patients with men-
too little rain combine with tal problems or substance
CRAPS the Santa Ana winds. Los abuse, including veterans

ONLY CASINO IN ARUBA TO OFFER 3, 4 & 5 TIME ODDS Angeles has gotten hardly with post-traumatic stress
any measurable rain in two syndrome, smoldered after
months. burning overnight. Aerial
Like the deadly October footage showed dozens
SPORTSBOOK fires in Napa and Sonoma of homes in one neighbor-
counties, the blazes are in hood burned to the ground
LIVE SIMULCAST OF ALL MAJOR TRACKS areas more suburban than and a large subdivision
THROUGHOBRED AND HARNESS rural. in jeopardy as the flames
“That means that there spit out embers that could
are going to be far greater spark new blazes.q