Results tagged “firefighters”

Although tomorrow afternoon we officially usher in fall, we're about to be swept up in another heat wave, this time complete with hot, dry Santa Ana winds. Not only does that mean we will be uncomfortably hot for another stretch of time, but also the risk for wildfires is dramatically higher. "Fire crews across Southern California will be on alert as a red flag warning goes into effect at midnight," explains abc7.com.

A lot of thank-yous, hugs and gratitude has been given to firefighters this past week in light of the recent wildfires, most notably the Station Fire. With that said, Sunset Strip Music Festival organizers today announced that they are allowing free admittance to Los Angeles City and Los Angeles County Firefighters with proper ID into the festival on Saturday when the street closes. Some 40 bands will take the outdoor and indoor-club stages from 2 p.m. to around 9 p.m. (with shows continuing indoors until around 2 a.m.). Headliners include Ozzy Osbourne, Korn, Pepper, The Donnas, Fishbone, Unwritten Law, Kottonmouth Kings, Shiny Toy Guns, Shwayze and LMFAO (see a full list here). Tickets are selling at $39.50 pre-sale, $50 at the door.

In a press conference held shortly after 8 this morning at the command center in Hansen Dam, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mayor Villaraigosa spoke of the current data regarding the massive Station Fire, the heroism of the firefighters, and the assistance available to the victims.

In a direct and to-the-point opinion in the Daily News yesterday, Councilman Greig Smith further shamed the firefighters' union for a mailer sent out last week depicting the Chatsworth metrolink crash, which left 25 dead and 135 injured, juxtaposed with information about budget cuts to the LAFD. Smith, who represents Chatsworth and is the incoming chairman for the city's Public Safety Committee, lambasted union president Pat McOsker in his writing:

As part of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's "shared sacrifice" plan to save the city budget, cuts proposed to fire department ladder and ambulance companies, nicknamed "brownouts," would short-staff stations on a rotating basis by 87 firefighters.

The Daily News has published their analysis of LAFD salaries and overtime pay, and the results might have some folks feeling burned. The report shows that overtime pay has risen 60% in the past ten years with a personnel increase of only 17% (to 3, 586 firefighters), and "there is no real effort to rein in the expense despite the city's budget crisis."

Los Angeles City Fire Department Captain Steve Ruda began his address to the evacuees, volunteers, and members of the press gathered this morning at Sylmar High School by admitting "I don't have good news."

The Santa Ana winds will worsen over the next few hours, then finally mellow out around noon. Northridge View at the 11800 block of Reseda is now under mandatory evacuation as the fire licks at the road. Edelston Park has been completely destroyed. In spite of the proximity of the fire, Cal State Northridge will be open today. The 118 West was just reopened.

       

As of 11:45 a.m., numbers about from the Chatsworth train crash between a Metrolink commuter train and a Union Pacific freight train remained static. 18 confirmed dead (including an LAPD Officer) with 135 injured. 45 of whom were in critical condition, 40 in serious and 50 in minor. 40 people were flown by helicopter to all twelve of the trauma centers around the city.

       

The area around Stoney Point Park felt chaotic a half hour after the crash between the Metrolink commuter train and a freight train this afternoon. Details about what just happened were coming out in pieces as a group of neighbors gathered on a corner at a police line at Rinaldi St and Canoga Ave. A commuter who said he was in the last car of the train was standing on the sidewalk. He looked phased and disturbed but mentioned he saw dead bodies before walking away to call someone to get the hell out of there.

The brush fire in Griffith Park near Travel town, first reported at approximately 2 p.m. today, is now 60% contained and has no active hot spots, according to an LAFD alert. 300 firefighters from multiple area agencies were on scene and about 50-60 acres have burned so far. The fire is expected to be totally contained by midday tomorrow. Fortunately, there have been no injuries so far.

Yesterday's 25-acre brush fire in Griffith Park forced the evacuation of nearby zoo patrons as well as animals from a breeding facility, like the endangered Condors.

Blackwater might be a more appropriate name for the future of some private firefighting business. Robert at Calitics has been looking into federal firefighter shortages during the recent spate of wildfires (over 1700 in total since June 20). He reports that there have been "deliberate staffing shortages have left the USFS [US Forest Service] unable to do vital off-season brush clearance, and left them without the staffing to get a quick jump on fires in their crucial initial stages."

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*UPDATE 5:01: One firefighter was killed and another critically injured after reporting to the scene of an explosion that blew manhole covers off the ground and damaged part of a building in Westchester.

Fire departments across the Southern California area were preparing for this all week and beginning at 3:30 a.m. this morning, another Malibu wildfire began. Here are the facts as of so far: 35 homes lost 220 acres burned Fire began near Malibu Lake on state park land About 100 homes in three communities evacuated No injuries were reported Evacuation Center set up at Agoura High School Do not evacuate to Zuma Beach as smoke is...

There are 14,000 firefighters our there right now helping protecting us. 3,000 of them are prison inmates who began working the front lines yesterday.A spokesman for the corrections department says it's close to the most the state has ever used. The inmates go through a four-week training program. They must be physically fit, have no history of violent crime and have between four months to three years remaining on their sentences. They're paid $1...

This playlist of 45 songs was hand-picked to help you focus on your Wednesday Happenings while rockin' out to songs about fire and burning. This goes out to the thousands of firefighters who spent the past 72 hours on high alert, saving people, pets and property across Southern California. The tally according to the LA Times: 420,424 acres burned, 1,155 homes destroyed, 881,500 people evacuated. If you are where you'd normally be on a...