Local News in Brief : Power Lines Blamed for Devastating Fire
A firestorm that swept through a Baldwin Park neighborhood last Thursday, destroying 14 homes, was started when power lines were blown into each other by fierce Santa Ana winds, county fire officials said Wednesday.
“The lines hit together and dropped molten metal from the conductors,” said Assistant Fire Chief Harold McCann.
Sparks and molten metal ignited bales of paper in a storage yard at the Allan Co. recycling plant, causing a fire that was quickly propelled into an adjacent residential neighborhood by the strong winds, McCann said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
