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U.S. NEWS Monday 4 SepteMber 2017
Wildfires surge amid scorching heat across West

Burbank resident George Francisco Bay Area fell Sun-
Grair was not in the evacu- day from all-time records
ation zone but watched set the previous two days.
uneasily as flames black- “I went to Home Depot,
ened a hillside in the near Walgreens, Office Depot,
distance. Target.
“It’s very difficult to feel They were sold out!” down-
safe. I’ve got kids in the town office worker Alga-
house,” he told KABC-TV. “I nesh Ucbayonas said Sun-
probably slept two hours all day, detailing her unsuc-
night.” cessful search for a fan.
The high at Los Angeles In- “CVS!” she remembered.
ternational Airport reached On Sunday, Ucbayonas sat
97 degrees Fahrenheit (36 at her desk in a building lob-
degrees Celsius) Sunday, by squarely between two
topping the previous mark fans, both scrounged from
of 92 (33 Celsius), set in her office building’s stor-
1982. Records were also age and trained straight at
set in parts of Ventura and her face.
Santa Barbara counties, Fires burning up and down
where the temperature hit the Sierra Nevada and fur-
101 degrees (38 Celsius). ther to the northwest cast
San Francisco residents, an eerie yellow and gray
meanwhile, stifled under haze over much of Califor-
a third day of a rare heat nia, and much of the state
wave in the coastal city, was under alerts because
although highs in the San of poor air quality.q

A Skycrane helicopter drops water on a hotspot, Sunday, Sept.
3, 2017, in Burbank, Calif. Several hundred firefighters worked to
contain a blaze that chewed through brush-covered mountains,
prompting evacuation orders for homes in Los Angeles, Burbank
and Glendale.
(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
CHRISTOPHER WEBER cal emergency and at
ELLEN KNICKMEYER the state level, Gov. Jerry
Associated Press Brown did the same for
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Smoke the county after the wild-
filled the sky and ash rained fire destroyed three homes
down across Los Angeles and threatened hillside
Sunday from a destructive neighborhoods.
wildfire that the mayor said More than a thousand fire-
was the largest in city histo- fighters battled flames that
ry — one of several blazes chewed through more
that sent thousands fleeing than 9 square miles (23 ki-
homes across the U.S. West lometers) of brush-covered
during a blistering holiday mountains as authorities is-
weekend heat wave. sued evacuation orders for
In Oregon, crews rescued homes in Los Angeles, Bur-
about 140 hikers forced bank and Glendale.
to spend the night in the Temperatures were in the
woods after fire broke out mid-to-high 90s but crews
along the popular Co- got a break from increased
lumbia River Gorge Trail. humidity and winds that
Search and rescue crews calmed to less than 5 mph.
air-dropped supplies on “That can change in a
Saturday as flames pre- moment’s notice and the
vented the hikers’ escape. winds can accelerate very
Wildfires also burned in a quickly,” Los Angeles Fire
2,700-year-old grove of Capt. Ralph Terrazas told
giant sequoia trees near reporters Sunday.
Yosemite National Park, “There is a lot of fuel out
forced evacuations in there left to burn.”
Glacier National Park and Officials were keeping
drove people from homes an eye on thunderstorms
in parts of the West strug- in the mountains to the
gling with blazing tempera- north, which could bring
tures. welcome rain but also the
Los Angeles Mayor Eric risk of flash floods and light-
Garcetti declared a lo- ning.