- Title: Monster fire threatens hillside mansions in California
- Date: 12th December 2017
- Summary: MONTECITO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (DECEMBER 12, 2017) (REUTERS) WALL OF FLAMES MORE OF FLAMES PAN FROM HOUSE TO FIRE MORE OF FIRES BURNING WALL OF FLAME FIRE SPOKESMAN AT SCENE (SOUNDBITE) (English) CAPTAIN STEVE CONCIALDI, SPOKESMAN FOR CAL FIRE, SAYING: "It has burned down to some beautiful homes. You can see that the homes that have a lot of defensible space are spar
- Embargoed: 26th December 2017 22:59
- Keywords: California wildfires Thomas Fire flames disaster homes victims
- Location: MONTECITO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- City: MONTECITO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Fires
- Reuters ID: LVA0017BM21XJ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The wall of flames of the Thomas Fire on Tuesday (December 12) afternoon were about 200 yards (183 meters) away from and inching closer to expensive mansions in Montecito, one of the richest communities in the United States.
Fire trucks and firefighters lined the canyon road in front of mansions, poised in driveways to jump into action should the fire wall get closer to the homes.
The Thomas Fire, which broke out on Dec. 4 near the community of Ojai, has since spread 27 miles (43 km) to become the fifth largest blaze in state history. It has blackened more than 366 square miles (948 square kilometers) in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, an area larger than New York City.
Officials said that while the conflagration charred another 2,500 acres overnight, a break in the hot, dry Santa Ana winds on Tuesday sapped its forward momentum and allowed crews to prevent further damage to homes. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None