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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 12, 2017)
NATION/WORLD Thursday, October 12, 2017 East Oregonian Page 7A Deadly California fires explode again By ELLEN KNICKMEYER and JOCELYN GECKER Associated Press SANTA ROSA, Calif. — Fueled by the return of strong winds, the wildfires burning through California wine country exploded in size and number Wednesday as authorities issued new evacuation orders and the death toll climbed to 21 — a figure that was expected to rise higher still. Three days after the fires began, firefighters were still unable to gain control of the blazes that had turned entire Northern California neighborhoods to ash and destroyed at least 3,500 homes and businesses. “We are literally looking at explosive vegetation,” said Ken Pimlott, chief of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. “It is very dynamic. These fires are changing by the minute in many areas.” The entire historic town of Calistoga, population 5,000, was evacuated. In neighboring Sonoma County, authorities issued an evacua- tion advisory for the northern part of the town of Sonoma and the community of Boyes Hot Springs. By the time the advisory was issued, lines of cars were already fleeing. “That’s very bad,” resi- dent Nick Hinman said when a deputy sheriff warned him that the driving winds could shift the wildfires toward the town of Sonoma proper, with 11,000 residents. “It’ll go up like a candle.” Ash snowed over the Sonoma Valley, covering windshields, as winds begin picking up toward the poten- tially disastrous forecast speed of 30 mph. Cars of evacuees raced away from the flames while countless emergency vehicles raced toward them, sirens blaring. Residents manhandled canvas bags into cars AP Photo/Eric Risberg A Cal Fire official looks out at the remains of the Journey’s End mobile home park Wednesday in Santa Rosa, Calififornia. Blazes burning in Northern California have become some of the deadliest in state history. Hundreds missing; loved ones go online SANTA ROSA, Calif. (AP) — Friends and relatives desperately checked hospitals and shelters and pleaded on social media for help finding loved ones missing amid Cali- fornia’s wildfires, with hundreds of people unaccounted for Wednesday. “We’ve been to 17 evacuation centers. We’ve called probably 12 hospitals. I mean, my whole family, all my friends looking for her,” Jessica Tunis said as she searched for her mother, who was last heard saying “I’m going to die” before the phone at her burning mobile home in Santa Rosa went dead. Hours later Wednesday, the daughter texted a reporter to say that the remains of her mother, 69-year-old Linda Tunis, had been found in the ruins of her home. As of Wednesday, 22 wildfires were burning in Northern California, up from 17 the day before. The blazes killed at least 21 people and destroyed an estimated 3,500 jammed with possessions or filled their gas tanks. homes and businesses, many of them in California wine country. How many people were missing was unclear, and officials said the lists could include duplicated names and people who are safe but haven’t told anyone, whether because of the general confusion or because cellphone service is out across wide areas. “We get calls and people searching for lost folks and they’re not lost, they’re just staying with somebody and we don’t know where it is,” said Napa County Supervisor Brad Wagenknecht. With many fires still raging out of control, authorities said locating the missing was not their priority. Sonoma County Sheriff Robert Giordano put the number of people unaccounted for in the hard-hit county at 380 and said officers were starting limited searches in the “cold zones” they could reach. The wildfires ranked as the third deadliest and most destructive in state history. And officials warned the worst was far from over. “Make no mistake, this is a serious, critical, catastrophic event,” Pimlott said. The fires have burned through a staggering 265 square miles of urban and rural areas. High winds and low humidity made conditions ideal for fire on the start virtually anywhere on ground that was parched from years of drought. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokesman Daniel Berlant said 22 wildfires were burning Wednesday, up from 17 the day before. As the fires grow, officials voiced concern that separate fires would merge into even larger infernos. “We have had big fires in the past. This is one of the biggest, most serious, and it’s not over,” Gov. Jerry Brown said at a news conference, alongside the state’s top emergency officials. They said 8,000 firefighters and other personnel were battling the blazes and more resources were pouring in from Oregon, Nevada, Washington and Arizona. Flames have raced across the wine-growing region and the scenic coastal area of Mendocino farther north, leaving little more than smol- dering ashes and eye-stinging smoke in their wake. Whole neighborhoods were leveled, with only brick chimneys and charred appliances to mark sites that were once family homes. In Boyes Hot Springs, residents for days had watched the ridges over the west side of town to gauge how close the billowing smoke and orange flames of the wildfires had come. On Wednesday, the ridges themselves were obscured by the growing clouds of smoke. Increasingly large pieces of gray ash drifted down on the community. Sirens wailed. Residents who had held out hope of staying at home, packed up to leave. Sonoma County Sheriff Robert Giordano said hundreds of people were still reported missing. But officials believe many of those people will be found. Chaotic evacuations and poor communications over the past few days have made locating friends and family difficult. The sheriff also expects the death toll to climb. “The devastation is enor- mous,” he said. “We can’t even get into most areas.” Pimlott said 73 helicop- ters, 30 air tankers, 550 firetrucks and nearly 8,000 firefighters were being used. Until now the efforts have focused on “life safety” rather than extinguishing the blazes, partly because the flames were shifting with winds and targeting new communities without warning. Report: Key changes needed to prevent fiery rail crashes By JOAN LOWY Associated Press WASHINGTON — A prestigious scientific organi- zation on Wednesday called for more frequent and better inspections of freight railroad tracks to prevent potentially catastrophic oil and ethanol train crashes. A report by the National Academies of Sciences also urged better training for emer- gency workers and questioned the validity of recent train speed regulation. From 2005 to 2015, there were 21 derailments or collisions in the U.S. of trains hauling crude oil, resulting in the release of 1.6 million gallons. There were 58 ethanol train crashes over the same period, resulting in the release of 2.6 million gallons. The trains are often more than 100 cars long, and spilled oil or ethanol from ruptured tank AP Photo/Rockford Register Star, Scott Morgan, File In this June 21, 2009 file photo, railroad freight cars are destroyed after a fiery explosion that killed one person are next to the train tracks following a derailment June 19 in Rockford, Ill. cars has ignited and created giant fireballs that can last for days. Several derailments were attributed to track problems that weren’t detected in inspections shortly before the incidents. Federal regulations presume that inspectors won’t always catch all track prob- lems, but the report questions whether there should be an acceptable failure rate. It suggests that these rates and priorities for track repair be adjusted for routes used by trains hauling crude oil and ethanol. The government should encourage railroads to make more frequent and compre- hensive inspections of track on routes regularly used by oil and ethanol trains, including the use of advances in inspec- tion technologies like sensors, high-resolution imaging and autonomous systems, the report said. Some railroads are using drones to increase track inspections. Derailments of all kinds reached an all-time low in 2016, said Jessica Kahanek, a spokeswoman for the Associ- ation of American Railroads. Derailments involving crude oil account for less than 1 percent of all derailments, she said. Railroads are already using many of the technologies mentioned in the report and are doing extensive research on ways “to make a safe network even safer,” Kahanek said. The report also questioned the technical basis for a recent safety regulation that reduced the maximum speed for oil trains to 50 mph in most areas and 40 mph in urban areas. Of the 20 most serious train wrecks in which oil and ethanol were released in the United States from 2005 to 2015, none of the trains were traveling faster than 50 mph and only six were traveling at 40 mph or more, the report said. Some safety advocates favor a 30 mph limit. The railroad industry opposes the lower speed, saying it would cause traffic jams and ship- ping delays. Emergency responders in many of the communities traversed by oil and ethanol trains, especially volunteer fire departments in rural areas, still lack familiarity with procedures for handling a large-scale incident involving highly flammable liquids, the report said. It recommended that emer- gency preparedness grants be used to assist “communities that are facing new and unfa- miliar risks.” Clear guidelines are also lacking on the kinds of information railroads should provide state and local agen- cies to prepare for such emer- gencies, the report said. And it’s unclear if the information railroads are sharing with state emergency planning agencies is getting to first responders. Oil and ethanol train derail- ments continue, although the pace has slowed. In June, 20 cars of a 115-car oil train derailed while passing through Plainfield, Illinois on its way to Louisiana. A tank car leaked 20,000 gallons of crude oil, most of which burned, following a collision in April between two trains near Money, Mississippi. For more information, call 1-800-962-2819 2x3 EXAMPLE Celebrate your loved ones in our VETERANS DAY TRIBUTE We are so proud of you for serving your country. Free Example: Honoring those who have served and those who are currently serving our country! They’ve served our country with courage and honor. They’ve left behind loved ones to risk their lives while protecting our country. They’ve defended our freedoms and ideals. They make us proud to be Americans. Help us honor them. SALUTE E 1x4 EXAMPLE Love Evelyn, We are so Joe proud and of you Cheryl for serving J OSEPH S MITH your country. J OSEPH B. D AVIS Staff Sergeant Joel Davis US Marines Veteran This special section will print in the Hermiston Herald on Nov. 8 and in the East Oregonian on Nov. 11, 2017. There is NO CHARGE to be included. Bring us or send in photos of servicemen, servicewomen or veterans, along with the information in the form to the right, by November 2. Thank you for your service! Love Evelyn, Joe and Cheryl If you’d like to purchase a larger space to include a special message, border, flags, or stars and stripes, rates are $40 for a 1x4” space or $55 for a 2x3” space. Private party only. Please call 1-800-962-2819. Love always Marcy, Julie & Emily Service Person’s Name Military Branch Your Name Your Address Your Phone Number Military Rank Currently Serving Veteran (Check One) Deliver to: East Oregonian 211 SE Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 Hermiston Herald 333 E. Main. Hermiston, OR 97830 or e-mail to classifieds@eastoregonian.com
