Article: California declares emergency as wildfires spread

Published: Saturday August 15, 2009 MYT 12:05:00 PM

DAVENPORT, California (AP) - Fire crews fanned out Friday across a parched California where wind-whipped wildfires have forced hundreds of people to flee their homes and led to an emergency declaration in Santa Cruz County.

In the Santa Cruz Mountains, the Lockheed Fire has prompted officials to issue mandatory evacuation orders for the mountain communities of Swanton and Bonny Doon, which have about 2,400 residents and several wineries.

The blaze, which started Wednesday night, has blackened 6.5 square miles (17 square kilometers) of remote wilderness and was only about 5 percent contained, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.

In Davenport, a coastal town near the Lockheed Fire, Lt. Gov. John Garamendi declared a state of emergency for Santa Cruz County as a step toward getting federal assistance for local governments and private property owners.

Garamendi was acting at the request of the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors while Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was out of state attending the funeral of his mother-in-law, Eunice Shriver.

"We're entering the height of fire season in California," he said. "We need to prepare." The governor was expected to tour the fire zone on Saturday.

The fire, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of the coastal city of Santa Cruz, has damaged only two small structures but was threatening more than 1,000 other homes and buildings. There have been no reports of injuries. The cause is under investigation.

Six helicopters and six fixed-wing aircraft were expected to join the firefighting effort, along with another 300 firefighters to help the roughly 700 already on the scene.

The steep, rugged terrain and dense vegetation has made it difficult to contain the blaze, so firefighters are focused on keeping flames away from homes, said Jim Stunkel, a battalion chief from San Jose. "As the brush ignites, it's like a fireworks explosion, and the sparks rain down where the ranch houses are," he said. "As it comes toward us, we'll put hose lines down, dig a line and try to push the fire back. That's all we can do right now."

Smoke plumes extended over 50 miles (80 kilometers) from Santa Cruz to Monterey, but winds were blowing the smoke out toward the Pacific Ocean, said Richard Stedman, director of the Monterey Bay Unified Air Pollution Control District. Officials were monitoring air quality but do not believe it has reached unhealthy levels.

Farther down the coast, more than 1,800 firefighters were battling a wildfire around Los Padres National Forest that had grown to nearly 105 square miles (272 square kilometers), said U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Valerie Baca.

Trinity County District Attorney Michael Harper charged 60-year-old Brenda Eitzen of Los Molinos with two felonies and two misdemeanors alleging she negligently sparked the blaze by throwing away a lit cigarette Wednesday. The charges could bring a maximum four-year prison term.

Eitzen did not enter a plea at her arraignment. Her bail was set at $100,000. Her attorney, Derrick Riske, did not return repeated telephone messages Friday.

Eitzen has no criminal history, Harper said. She was staying at a drug rehabilitation shelter at the time of the fire, he said.

This article was taken from: The Star Online: World Updates 15 August 2009