Large forest fires near Los Angeles continue to spread

Several large forest fires have continued to spread in Los Angeles. As the authorities in the US state of California announced on Tuesday, thousands of firefighters were deployed at the fires around the second largest city in the USA to prevent further spread and to bring the flames under control. There have been no reports of deaths or serious injuries so far, but the fires threaten tens of thousands of homes and other buildings.

The so-called Airport Fire alone, which was accidentally triggered during construction work on Monday afternoon and spread quickly, has already destroyed more than 3,600 hectares of land in the Orange County district of Los Angeles. Several schools have been closed due to the heavy smoke.

As the chief of the Orange County Fire Department, Steve Concialdi, said, the fire is also approaching Santiago Peak, where several radio towers are located. The fire department has to withdraw from the area because the flames have become too intense. Firefighting planes and helicopters were also deployed in the region.

Northeast of Los Angeles, the Line Fire in San Bernardino County has now quickly destroyed 11,300 hectares of land. In resort towns such as Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear, people were ordered to leave their homes and apartments. Several important access roads were closed. The fire department also fought this fire from the air. On the ground, firefighters tried to create fire breaks.

The smaller bridge fire north of Los Angeles, which broke out on Sunday, destroyed more than 1,600 hectares of land by Tuesday afternoon. Gusty winds, heat and dry conditions are making the work of firefighters more difficult.

The fires are being fueled by a heat wave that has been affecting California and the neighboring state of Nevada since the middle of last week. In some regions, people are suffering from temperatures well over 40 degrees. Tuesday should be the last extremely hot day, however. Meteorologists are expecting a rapid cooling from Thursday onwards.

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