(Press-News.org) NASA's Terra satellite captured this natural-color satellite image of California's Powerhouse Fire with the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on June 1, 2013. Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS's thermal bands, are outlined in red.
According to the CBSnews.com, "Nearly 3,000 people from some 700 homes were under evacuation orders Monday as a wildfire north of Los Angeles kept growing, feeding on old, dry brush, some of which hadn't burned in decades.
The blaze had burned about 46 square miles in the mountains and canyons of the Angeles National Forest, destroying at least six homes and damaging 15 more."
Inciweb.org reports that the fire exhibited extreme rates of spread and became established across the aqueduct and Lancaster road. The rapid and unpredictable fire has made evacuations difficult. Evacuation order is in place for large portions of fire area, including the communities of Green Valley, Lake Hughes, Elizabeth Lake. Hikers on the Pacific Coast Trail are being rerouted to the desert.
The community of Lake Hughes is under mandatory evacuations and Elisabeth Lake is under a voluntary evacuation order from the Sheriffs. Over one thousand structures are being threatened by this fire.
Being employed to fight the fire are 975 personnel, seven bulldozers, 93 fire engines, eight helicopters, eight air tankers including a DC10, and 12 water tenders.
At present, the fire is only 20% contained and the growth potential is high due to low humidity, high temperature and the location of the fire in very rough, steep terrain.
A Press Conference is scheduled in Palmdade at 4:00 p.m. PDT to provide a fire update. More updates can be found at: http://www.inciweb.org/incident/3399/
INFORMATION:
NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response Team, GSFC. Caption by Lynn Jenner
Powerhouse Fire, California
2013-06-04
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