Trending Topics
TREES IN BLOOM 
This isn’t one of those springs when the hills are covered in a vivid profusion of wildflowers. The Santa Monica Mountains have received just a fraction of the average rainfall for the season. Hot weather is already arriving, drying...
SAVING THE COAST 
The Trump Administration is taking aim at the California Coastal Commission, and according to a recent New York Times article, the President may have an ally in California Governor Gavin Newsom. The Times headline states “Trump and Newsom Find...
Mission Impossible U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 
If it’s dangerous, difficult, or downright impossible and it involves American infrastructure, disaster recovery, or water resources, there’s a good chance the US Army Corps of Engineers will be the ones called in to deal with it, sometimes with...
Malibu Reeling 
The Malibu stretch of Pacific Coast Highway turns 100 next year. It’s strange to know its centennial will begin with a third of the houses, businesses, landmarks that have built up along this road over the past century almost...
Playing with Rain and Fire
Fire Hawk and a Chinook double-dipping at 69 Bravo Helistop
NewsBeat

Playing with Rain and Fire 

Fire Hawk and a Chinook double-dipping at 69 Bravo Helistop

Pacific Coast Highway and Tuna Canyon were shut down for hours on January 21, while firefighters worked to contain a fastmoving brush fire in steep terrain. (see spectacular photo on following page.) The fire is thought to have ignited at a homeless encampment. It spread rapidly up a steep embankment in thick vegetation that burned despite recent heavy rainfall. The Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Fire Hawk and Chinook helicopters, together with an LA City Fire Department helicopter, used the resources at helistop 69 Bravo to swiftly drop more than 18 loads of water—approximately 16,500 gallons—on the blaze in less than an hour. The road closure remained in place while ground crews mopped up and made sure all hot spots were fully extinguished. Rapid air response is credited with preventing this incident from becoming a major one. It’s a reminder that even in the rainy season wildfire is a constant concern for everyone in the wildland interface.

The January 21 fire spread rapidly up a steep embankment in thick vegetation that burned despite recent heavy rainfall. Photo courtesy of Acting Assistant Chief Drew Smith

Related posts

Leave a Reply

Required fields are marked *