Sand Fire (2016)

Not to be confused with Sand Fire (2019).
Sand Fire
View of the smoke plume of the Sand Fire from Hansen Dam, July 23, 2016
Date(s)
  • July 22, 2016 (2016-07-22) –
  • August 3, 2016 (2016-08-03)
LocationSanta Clarita Valley, Los Angeles County, California
Coordinates34°25′52″N 118°23′53″W / 34.431°N 118.398°W / 34.431; -118.398
Statistics[1]
Burned area41,432 acres (168 km2)
Impacts
Deaths2
Structures destroyed18
Map
Sand Fire (2016) is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Sand Fire (2016)
Location in Los Angeles

The Sand Fire was a wildfire in 2016 that burned in the Angeles National Forest, east of the Santa Clarita Valley in Los Angeles County, California.[2] The fire, named for the area's Sand Canyon, was fueled by heavy chaparral and brush.[3]

The fire

Afternoon winds on July 24 increased the intensity of the Sand Fire
A Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane flies over the fire on July 25th.

The fire started around 2:10 p.m. on July 22, 2016, near the intersection Soledad Canyon Road and Sand Canyon Road.[4] By 10 P.M., less than 8 hours after it was reported, the fire had burned at least 3,300 acres (13 km2).[2] At the time the fire broke out, temperatures were over 110 °F (43 °C) with sustained winds of 15 miles per hour (24 km/h) gusting up to 25 miles per hour (40 km/h).[2]

The Santa Clarita Valley remained under a Red flag warning throughout the 23rd with temperatures reaching 106 °F (41 °C) and sustained 10-mile-per-hour (16 km/h) winds.[citation needed] By the evening of Saturday July 23, the fire had grown to 20,000 acres (81 km2) with 10% containment.[citation needed] Mandatory evacuations had been issued for parts of Sand Canyon, Placerita Canyon, and Little Tujunga Canyon areas.[citation needed] Hundreds of birds and animals were also evacuated from the Wildlife WayStation sanctuary in Little Tujunga Canyon.[5]

Officials from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed Saturday night that a male's body had been found in the burn area.[6] The body, which was located on North Iron Canyon Road well within the mandatory evacuation area, was identified as Robert Bresnick, a 67-year-old man who had been visiting a friend in the area and had refused to evacuate.[7]

Sunday afternoon officials confirmed that Sable Ranch, a popular filming location, had been destroyed by the fire.[8] Popular shows including Maverick, The A-Team and 24 were all filmed at Sable Ranch.[8]

By Monday July 25, the fire had reach an estimated 35,155 acres (142.27 km2) with 40% of the perimeter contained.[9] Officials announced that at 7 p.m. most residents would be allowed to return home, with the exception of residents living on Placerita Canyon Road and Tujunga Canyon Road.[10]

Officials announced on August 3 that the fire was 100% contained after burning 41,432 acres (168 km2) of land[11]

Effects

According to the United States Forest Service, 3,379 firefighters were assigned to the fire which prompted the evacuation of at least 10,000 homes.[9] On Tuesday July 26, Los Angeles county declared a state of emergency, with over 37,000 acres (150 km2) burned. Acting Gov. Tom Torlakson, the state's top education official who was filling in while Gov. Jerry Brown attended the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, issued the emergency order, a move that helped quickly get aid to affected communities.[12]

The fire grew over 10,000 acres just on Sunday alone. 18 homes were burned, according to John Tripp, who is the Los County Fire Chief. A male-identified body was seen in a burned car, in Santa Clarita, a consequence of the fire.[13] Popular movie shoot location, Sable Ranch was burned, where movies like Chevy Chase and Robin Hodd were shot. Three firefighters were protecting the community, blazing out the fires, when one firefighter named Toscano, heard that he lost his home. A Go-Fund me was raised for Toscano and his family. In total, there were 900 firefighters against the flames, where the fighters found the mountain-terrain to be challenging to put out the fires. On Monday, researchers and experts suggested active winds in the range of 15-30 mph on Tuesday. The communities of Sand Canyon and Placerita Canyon both had evacuation orders in place for safety measures for the citizens.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Sand Fire Update". Inciweb. 25 July 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Sand Fire Grows to 1,500 Acres in Santa Clarita Area, Prompting Evacuations". KTLA. 22 July 2016. Retrieved 23 July 2016.
  3. ^ Hassan, Carma. "Hundreds flee Santa Clarita wildfire". CNN. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  4. ^ Boyer, Jessica (22 July 2016). "Sand Fire Grows to 3,327 Acres; 200–300 Evacuations". Santa Clarita Valley News. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  5. ^ "Wildlife Waystation evacuates lions, tigers and bears (oh, my) amid Sand Fire". 23 July 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  6. ^ Bloom, Tracy; Kuzj, Steve; Pamer, Melissa; Knight, Nerissa (23 July 2016). "Man Found Dead in Area of 20,000-Acre Sand Fire; Structures Destroyed". KTLA. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  7. ^ "2 Dead, More Than 60,000 Acres Burned as Firefighters Battle 2 Massive California Blazes". Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  8. ^ a b Evans, Greg (24 July 2016). "Sable Ranch, Popular Film & TV Location, Destroyed By Wildfire; Disney's Golden Oak Ranch "OK", LAFD Says – Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  9. ^ a b Hamilton, Matt (25 July 2016). "Sand fire live updates: More than 35,000 acres burned in Santa Clarita Valley mountains". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  10. ^ "Sand Fire: Most evacuated residents to be allowed to return home". KABC. 25 July 2016. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  11. ^ "Sand fire is now 100 percent contained". Los Angeles Daily News. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  12. ^ Hamilton, Matt; Branson-Potts, Hailey; Brittny, Mejia (26 July 2016). "Sand fire burns more than 37,000 acres in Santa Clarita Valley, prompting state of emergency". Los Angeles Times. LA Times. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  13. ^ Fawzy, Amy La Porte and Farida (2016-07-25). "Fire scorches 33,000 acres in Santa Clarita, California, area". CNN. Retrieved 2021-11-13.