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Wildfires Burn in Southern California
Written by
Lesly C. Simmons
, Staff Writer, RedCross.org
Thursday, September 29, 2005 — Southern California’s wildfire season has sparked up again as at least three major fires are burning across the state, including one that is still out of control near Los Angeles with no predictions on when it will be contained.
The cause of the Topanga Fire, as it is known, is still under investigation, but the fire started Wednesday afternoon and has already burned more than 7,000 acres near the town of Chatsworth, Ca. At least one home has been lost to the fire and many other are threatened in the exclusive hillside communities of the San Fernando Valley.
At the same time another fire is burning in Riverside County, south of Los Angeles. That fire is smaller at less than 2,000 acres burned, but it reached a ranch and caused the death of more than 75,000 chickens. That fire is expected to be contained sometime on Thursday.
For both fires, the combination of high winds and dry brush have helped fuel their growth and hampered efforts to extinguish them. As the fire rages, the Los Angeles county chapter of the Red Cross has opened shelters to accommodate those evacuated from their homes.
In Northern California, a fire in the Klamath National Forest has already claimed more than 2,000 acres, threatening many animals living in the forest in the heavily wooded area.
All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. You can help the victims of thousands of disasters across the country each year, disasters like the Midwest ice storms, by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to victims of disaster. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster please do so at the time of your donation. Call 1-800-REDCROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org.
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