The so-called sundowner winds are pushing south from the mountains down to the coast — removing moisture along the way — and are expected to present firefighters in Santa Barbara County with their biggest challenge since the Thomas fire roared back
Reporting from Montecito, Calif. — New evacuation orders were issued in Santa Barbara County on Saturday as the massive Thomas fire took aim at the hills above Montecito, with some wind gusts reported up to 65 mph.
The so-called sundowner winds pushed south from the mountains down to the coast — removing moisture along the way — and presented firefighters in Santa Barbara County with their biggest challenge since the Thomas fire roared back to life a week ago, officials said.
“When the sundowners surface in that area and the fire starts running down slopes, you are not going to stop it,” Mark Brown, an operations section chief for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, told reporters at a Saturday morning news briefing. “And we are not going to stand in front of it and put firefighters in untenable situations.”
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A significant boost in the humidity overnight Friday did virtually nothing to help, fire behavior analyst Tim Chavez told firefighters.
“One of the other characteristics of the strong downslope winds is it rapidly and abruptly scours the marine layer out of the coastal plain,” Chavez said.
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One fire commander told crews to “plan on getting your … kicked” Saturday.
The Thomas fire is now the third largest fire in California’s history since accurate recording began in 1932. The wildfire, which started in Ventura County on Dec. 4, has scorched 267,500 acres and killed two people, including a firefighter. It has also destroyed more than 1,000 structures and damaged hundreds more.
A portion of the northbound 101 Freeway into Santa Barbara was closed to traffic Saturday as evacuation orders were expanded in areas in and around Montecito, Summerland and Carpinteria. About 1,600 Santa Barbara County residents are under mandatory evacuation orders, while 34,000 residents in the fire zone remain under voluntary evacuation.
Small platoons of firetrucks awaited orders with their engines running in the parking lots of public schools, churches and other designated safety zones in the Montecito area. Several fire engines were dispatched to the historic San Ysidro Ranch to protect structures.
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By late Saturday morning, the Thomas fire had moved down from the mountains above Montecito and was now surrounding homes in the foothills, said David Zaniboni, a spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department.
“There’s been fire all around structures just north of us just above Cold Springs Road and the Westmont College area,” Zaniboni said. “Crews have been in and around structures and just doing structure defense where they can.”
Wind gusts of up to 65 mph blasted south down the San Ysidro Creek drainage directly into Montecito.
‘Unfortunately they under-predicted this one,” Zaniboni said. “We weren’t expecting this severe of a wind event and we’re certainly getting the worst...This fire is two weeks old and here we are battling it like it just started again this morning.”
Resident Darren Caesar stood off the shoulder of Highway 192 next to the Montecito Fire Station and pointed to a row of firetrucks and tankers parked about 50 yards away. Caesar, his wife, and two of his three daughters were planning to evacuate, he said.
“Look at how many firefighting assets they have. I know what they’re doing. I trust that they can do everything they can to protect the structures,” he said. “But it’s the wind. Nobody can fight the wind.”
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The northerly offshore winds are blowing steady at an overall 29 mph and could drive the fire all the way to the coast, said Tom Fisher, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. The winds were expected to gradually subside after 6 p.m. in Santa Barbara County, he said.
Late Saturday afternoon, firefighters in Montecito took advantage when winds died to stop the flames from advancing closer to multimillion dollar homes along East Mountain Drive. Firefighters were spread out along the narrow streets and sprayed water over brush and trees considered “hot spots,” as rocks and boulders tumbled down the mountain.
David Silva, a firefighter with the San Bernardino Fire Department, pointed to the green brush behind him that hadn’t yet burned as members of his crew sprayed water onto burning embers. He said he is worried about the winds picking up Saturday night.
“The crazy weather makes it difficult to predict where the fire is going,” he said. “We will be here all night.”
He said helicopters and airplanes didn’t have a chance Saturday to dump fire retardant or water in the area because of low visibility and unpredictable wind.
“We were hoping it’d be over by Christmas,” he said of the fire, “but now it looks like we will be here a while.”
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Firefighters had smothered portions of the Santa Barbara hills with hundreds of thousands of gallons of fire retardant in an attempt to keep embers from igniting spot fires, officials said. Some hillsides were intentionally denuded above Montecito, Summerland and Carpinteria, including in Romero and Toro canyons, to limit the potential damage.
Santa Barbara County Fire Division Chief Martin Johnson told reporters Saturday night that the aggressive prevention measures had paid off. No homes were lost during the day.
“Earlier this evening I was asked the question, how many structures did we lose today?” Johnson said. “That’s the wrong question to ask. The question to ask is, how many did we save today?”
Late Saturday, fire crews were expected to shift their focus to Ventura County, where the northern edge of the fire was moving east and red flag conditions are expected to remain in place until Sunday night, officials said. Winds could gust up to 55 mph.
Red flag conditions were forecast in the mountains and valleys of Los Angeles counties through Sunday evening as well as parts of Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
The Thomas fire began Dec. 4 in Santa Paula near Thomas Aquinas College. In its first day, the blaze spread southwest, toward Ventura, and northwest, eventually hugging — and sparing — Ojai before pushing to the Santa Barbara County coast.
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John Bain and Brandon Baker try to stop a fire from burning a stranger’s home in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A brush fire moving with the wind sends embers all over residential neighborhoods north of Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A family packs up and evacuates as a brush fire gets closer to their home in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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John Bain and his friends, all from Camarillo, came to help as brush fires move quickly through residential neighborhoods in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Strangers band together to help put out a palm tree on fire and stop it from burning homes.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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The Hawaiian Gardens apartments burn in Ventura.
(Michael Owen Baker / For the Times)
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Residents help with the fire attack on Buena Vista Street in Ventura.
(Michael Owen Baker / For the Times)
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Residents watch the Thomas fire on Prospect Street in Ventura.
(Michael Owen Baker / For the Times)
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Firefighters are deployed to battle the fire in a Ventura neighborhood.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A chimney is all that stands of a home as a brush fire continues to threaten other homes in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Remnants of a home as a brush fire continues to threaten other homes in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A home burns on a hillside overlooking Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Palms are consumed in the Thomas fire.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times )
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Emma Jacobson, 19, center, gets a hug from a neighbor after her family home was destroyed by fire in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Olivia Jacobson, 16, wipes tears as she looks at her family’s home, destroyed by the brush fire on Island View Drive in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Aerial view of the Thomas fire in Ventura County.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
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Noah Alarcon carries a cage with the family cat while evacuating from Casitas Springs.
(Michael Owen Baker / For the Times)
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Smoke from the Thomas fire crosses over Lake Casitas near Ojai.
(Michael Owen Baker / For the Times)
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A Ventura County firefighter battles a blaze on Cobblestone Drive near Foothill Road in Ventura.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Ventura County Firefighter Aaron Cohen catches his breath after fighting to save homes along Cobblestone Drive near Foothill Road in Ventura.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Aerial view of homes burned to the ground in the Thomas fire in Ventura County.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times )
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A home between Via Baja and Foothill Road burns in Ventura.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Amanda Leon and husband Johnny Leon watch as firefighters fight to save homes along Cobblestone Drive near Foothill Road in Ventura.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Chino Valley firefighters fight to save a home along Cobblestone Drive near Foothill Road in Ventura.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Embers continue to burn at sunset Tuesday in a home on Ridgecrest Court at Scenic Way in the Clearpoint neighborhood of Ventura.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles TImes)
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A firefighter battles the Thomas fire along Highway 33 in Casitas Springs.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters try to protect homes from the Thomas fire along Highway 33 in Casitas Springs.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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A firefighter battles the Thomas fire along Highway 33 in Casitas Springs.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Edward Aguilar runs through the flames of the Thomas Fire to save his cats at his mobile home along Highway 33 in Casitas Springs in Ventura County.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Jeff Lipscomb, left, Gabriel Lipscomb, 17, center, and Rachel Lipscomb, 11, look for items to recover from their burned home in Ventura.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A traffic collision temporarily clogged lanes on the northbound 101 Freeway between Solimar and Faria Beaches as the Thomas fire burned in the hills.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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The Thomas fire burns towards the 101 Freeway and homes between Solimar and Faria Beaches.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Fire personnel keep an eye on the Thomas fire on Toland Road near Santa Paula.
(Michael Owen Baker / For the Times)
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A train on the Rincon coast passes a burning hillside from the Thomas fire.
(Michael Owen Baker / For the Times)
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The Thomas fire burns along the 101 Freeway north of Ventura on Wednesday evening.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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A firefighter battles the Thomas fire in the town of La Conchita early Thursday.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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A resident cries as the Thomas fire approaches the town of La Conchita early Thursday.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Burned palm trees are left standing between the 101 Freeway and Faria Beach as the Thomas fire reaches the Pacific Ocean.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters battle Thursday to protect the resort city of Ojai from encroaching flames.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Casey Rodriquez helps a friend move belongings after the Thomas Fire destroyed most of an apartment building on North Kalarama in Ventura.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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A burnt-out bus near Maripoca Highway.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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The Thomas fire burns in the Los Padres National Forest, near Ojai.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A huge plume of smoke rises north of Ventura as seen Sunday afternoon from the Ventura pier, as the Thomas fire threatens parts of Carpenteria and Montecito.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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The Thomas Fire burns in the Los Padres National Forest, near Ojai, Calif. on Friday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Residents react as they watch the Thomas Fire burn in the hills above La Conchita at 5 am Thursday moning.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Mary McEwen and husband Dan Bellaart prepare to evacuate their home on Toro Canyon Road in Montecito as the Thomas fire burns.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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Carpenteria resident Chris Gayner, right, photographs a plane in the hills of Carpenteria.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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From left, residents Michael Desjardins, his neighbor Patty Rodriguez, daughter Mikayla, wife Veronica, mother in law Amanda Buzin, and son Mikey keep an eye on the Thomas fire in Carpenteria.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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Mary McEwen cheers as she sees fire crews make their way up a hill past her home on Toro Canyon Rd. in Montecito.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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Dan Bellaart and wife Mary McEwen comfort each other in the backyard of their home that includes an avocado ranch on 9 acres of land on Toro Canyon Road in Montecito, as the Thomas fire burns in the background.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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Carpinteria resident Jay Molnar, 55, mouth and nose protected against the smoke, views flames glowing in the hills above the city on Dec. 11, 2017.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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Sacramento firefighters battle a blaze in Toro Canyon in Carpenteria at dusk Tuesday.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Josh Acosta, superintendent with Fulton Hotshots looks for ways to fight fire consuming a structure threatening two homes high up Toro Canyon in Carpenteria at dusk Tuesday.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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A motorcade passes on tHighway 126 carrying the body of a Cal Fire engineer Cory Iverson, who died Thursday morning while battling the Thomas Fire.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Santa Paula City officials, Police and Firefighters salute from a bridge as a motorcade passes on the Santa Paula Freeway 126 carrying the body of a Cal Fire engineer Cory Iverson.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Forest Service crews cut and clear dense brush for contingency lines off of East Camino Cielo in the Santa Ynez Mountains above Montecito and Santa Barbara to help stop the Thomas fire from advancing.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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A hotshot crew from Ojai marches towards their assignment to protect structures on East Mountain Drive in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters monitor the flames Saturday from a staging area near Parma Park in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Flames slowly make their way down a valley behind a home in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Flames whip around power lines as they move through Sycamore Canyon on Saturday, threatening structures in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Smoke billows over Santa Barbara as the Thomas Fire continues to threaten the area on Saturday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Bill Shubin, deputy fire chief of the Santa Rosa Fire Department checks on flames burning near homes north of East Mountain Drive in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A fire truck pulls responds to fires burning near homes on East Mountain Drive in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times )
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Brian Good, from US Forest Service, leans forward against the wind, and holds up a Kestrel to measure wind speeds up to 50 mph on Gibraltar Road in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A plume of smoke moves south as winds as high as 50 mph blow down Gibraltar Road on the west fork of Cold Spring Trail in Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Flames and a big plume of smoke threaten homes on Gibraltar Road near Gibraltar Rock, outside Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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The sun rises as fire crews prepare for another day of fighting the Thomas Fire, in Montecito, Calif., on Sunday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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An aircraft makes a water drop over a hot spot up in the mountain range at Gibraltar Rock near Montecito, Calif. on Sunday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Humboldt County firefighters Bobby Gray, left, hoses down smoldering flames inside a destroyed home, as Kellee Stoehr, right looks on, after the Thomas Fire burned in Montecito, Calif. on Sunday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A home on Park Hill Lane was destroyed by the Thomas fire in Montecito, Calif.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times )
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Humboldt County firefighters Lonnie Risling, left, and Jimmy McHaffie, right, spray down smoldering fire underneath the rubble of a home that was destroyed by the Thomas Fire, in Montecito, Calif., Sunday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Fire crews help the Behrman family retrieve their family’s personal belongings out of their burned home, in Montecito, Calif., on Sunday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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In the foreground of the ridges that were burned by the Thomas Fire, Rusty Smith stands outside his home that survived the flames that were kicked up by Saturday’s wind event and threatened his home in Flores Flats on Gibraltar Road, near Montecito.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
The Thomas fire began Dec. 4 in Santa Paula near Thomas Aquinas College. In its first day, the blaze spread southwest, toward Ventura, and northwest, eventually hugging — and sparing — Ojai before pushing to the Santa Barbara County coast.
The fire is so large that its eastern and western fronts are influenced by entirely different wind patterns and terrain. In many ways, it’s as if firefighters are battling two separate fires some 40 miles apart.
Firefighters are worried that gusts Saturday will fuel the fire’s spread into a canyon containing San Ysidro Creek directly south into the community of Montecito in Santa Barbara County. The red area indicates the area that has burned.
(Cal Fire / Google Maps )
But Johnson remained optimistic Saturday that firefighters would prevail in their fight. Fire officials said that 8,300 fire personnel have been mobilized to fight the Thomas Fire— the largest mobilization of fire crews to fight any wildfire in California history. Firefighting costs so far stand at $110 million.
“Earlier this week I referred to this fire as a beast - and it’s a monster. We all recognize that,” Johnson said. “But we will kill it. The team behind me, the men and women on the field, I have no doubt. They will take care of business and we will put this fire out.”
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Serna reported from Montecito and Ventura, Mejia from Los Angeles. Times staff writer Rong-Gong Lin II contributed to this report from Los Angeles.
Former Los Angeles Times staff writer Melissa Etehad is an Iranian American who enjoys writing about national and international issues. She received her master’s in journalism from Columbia University and a bachelor’s in international affairs from UC San Diego and has reported from the Middle East and Europe. She previously worked at Al Jazeera English and the Washington Post’s foreign desk, where she covered the intersections of politics, religion and gender. She’s a native Farsi speaker.
