Author: Charlotte Strauss Swanson and Leeanne Zabala
On Saturday, Nov. 15, a State of Emergency was declared in Los Angeles after fires broke out in the hills of Orange County and surrounding areas. According to NBC News, the fires began at 10:30 p.m. on Friday near the 210 Freeway in Sylmar. Residents were immediately evacuated, and forced to leave their homes and belongings.
Jennifer Lara (sophomore), whose family lives in Chino Hills – an area severely hit by the fires – said, “My aunt and cousin had to evacuate their home Sunday morning because one of the hills by their house was completely on fire . . . my brother told me it was very difficult to breathe and even see while driving.”
Because of the fires and resulting smog, freeways 57 and 91 were shut down, and, consequently, traffic made it impossible to travel. “My family had to drive from my house in Chino Hills to Brea, which normally takes about 15 minutes . . . it took about 3 hours,” Lara said.
According to NBC News, high schools “operated on a regular Monday schedule,” with the exception of Sylmar High School, which was used as an evacuation site for those people with damaged homes.
According to the L.A. Times, a total of 842 residences have been left destroyed, and at least 100 homes show signs of damage. Additionally, the fires have scorched thousands of acres of land in Sylmar, Corona, Chino, Yorba Linda, Brea and Anaheim.
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa told the L.A. Times, “The truth is, we haven’t seen a fire of this magnitude in decades.”
The fires that spread viciously throughout Southern California are now being contained. As evacuation orders are being lifted, families are returning to their homes: some intact, but others burned and destroyed. “I do know that all who had to evacuate are now safely in their homes,” Lara said.
On Tuesday Nov. 18, the L.A. Times reported that “firefighters achieved 95% containment of the 1,940-acre Tea fire, which started in Montecito,” and “the 11,213-acre Sayre fire was 70% contained.”
On Nov. 16, the Freeway Complex fire moved toward the city of Diamond Bar in Los Angeles County. Over 100 firefighters flooded the area to prevent the shifting fires from destroying more homes, including the home of Debbie Du (first-year), who lives in Diamond Bar.
“My own house in my community did not get evacuated, but a lot of my friends live in the gated community nearby that got evacuated so their parents had to pack up their valuables,” Du said. “The funny thing was that a lot of them didn’t leave and were waiting until it was absolutely necessary.”
Meanwhile, more firefighters waged against a devastating fire in the Sylmar area in the San Fernando Valley. The Sayre Fire damaged or destroyed 615 homes and buildings, including 500 mobile homes.
The cause of the fires is still unknown.
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