Trump declares fire disaster
First death linked to fires as infernos spread across Southern California
LOS ANGELES — The powerful Santa Ana winds that fueled a fiveday fire siege across Southern California this week began to ease Friday, but the destructive toll of the blazes continued to grow and firefighters will remain on high alert through the weekend.
The fires, which stretched from Ojai to Oceanside, destroyed more than 500 structures and forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes. The smoke created air quality problems that officials said reached unprecedented levels in some areas.
As hot, dry Santa Anas faded, officials warned that breezes from the ocean could pick up, changing the direction of the flames, placing fire crews at higher risk of getting caught without an escape route.
President Donald Trump on Friday approved a California emergency declaration, ordering federal aid to the area and putting the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency in charge of relief efforts.
In northern San Diego County, the Lilac Fire — which ignited Thursday off Interstate 15 — forced large swaths of Bonsall and Oceanside to evacuate. More than 1,000 firefighters were battling the blaze, which held at 4,100 acres from the night before with no containment.
The Lilac Fire destroyed at least 85 structures, including a number of mobile homes, authorities said Friday. Three people were injured, and more than two dozen horses were killed at a thoroughbred training center.
In Los Angeles County, firefighters on Thursday night took advantage of the calmest winds they had seen in days.
The 15,323-acre Creek Fire near Sylmar was 40 percent contained as of Friday morning, and no more structures were threatened, authorities said. At least 63 homes and other structures were destroyed and an additional 45 damaged, though officials expect that number to increase as damage assessment crews continue to survey the area, said L.A. Fire Capt. Branden Silverman.
The 475-acre Skirball Fire in Bel-Air was 30 percent con- tained. Six houses were destroyed.
The Thomas Fire in Ventura County was still the largest, spanning 132,000 acres from Santa Paula to the coast, with significant growth north of Ojai. It was 10 percent contained as of Friday morning and had destroyed 401 structures.
More than 87,000 people had been evacuated because of the Thomas Fire alone.