A fire is burning out of control in the Angeles National Forest above Azusa. Smoke fills the L.A. Basin and has fanned out over the Pacific, visible as a reddish-brown haze on the horizon. A red-flag warning is in effect through Friday.
After an unseasonably cool August, the heat is on and so leap the flames as they devour dense, tinder-dry brush. Consider this, then, the beginning of the most hellish time of year in Southern California: the fire season, fueled by arsonists, searing heat and Santa Ana winds.
It's my least favorite period, even though I live at the beach and am not close to fire corridors, because I do get the smoke and have no air conditioner to insulate myself from the motionless, hot, eye-stinging, ash-laden air that hovers over the coast during these episodes.
This is when firefighters earn their salaries, and they are underpaid for what they go through. The Morris fire above the San Gabriel Valley is just the start, and so far it has included a forced evacuation of campers, the aerial rescue of an 18-member Boy Scout troop and voluntary evacuations at other campgrounds and a nearby mobile home park.
The end is not in sight. The fire was only 10% contained at last check, and the forecast calls for temperatures exceeding 100 degrees and low humidity. Before this fire is extinguished, another could easily spring up elsewhere.
To be sure, this is the time of year hikers, bikers, campers and anyone else entering the wilderness should exercise extreme caution and also keep eyes peeled for suspicious activity, because one less fire could save lives and property.
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Fire fighters continue to battle the Morris fire, located near the Santa Fe Dam Recreational area in San Gabriel Valley.
The fire has consumed approx. 600 acres and it continues to grow, estimates are it could consume 1000+ acres.
Temperatures are predicted above 100 during today.
The fire is on both sides of the Highway 39 which winds up the San Gabriel Valley Mountains, above the Azusa area.
There are two reservoirs located near the fire, Morris and San Gabriel. The fire is moving at a pretty good rate.
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