President Donald Trump has called for a national day of prayer in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.
Hopefully, my fellow Americans will direct a few prayers to California as well. Hundreds have been forced to evacuate as the largest wildfire in Los Angles history rages.
Hundreds of firefighters Sunday continued to battle the 5,800-acre La Tuna Fire as authorities issued new evacuation orders for more than two dozen homes in Burbank.Firefighters assisted by water-dropping helicopters worked around-the-clock in an attempt to get the upper hand on the blaze dubbed the largest in terms of acreage within Los Angeles city limits, according to Mayor Eric Garcetti.The fire has spurred both voluntary and mandatory evacuation orders for hundreds of homes in Los Angeles, Burbank and Glendale.Authorities Sunday evacuated about 30 homes in the Castleman Estates area. Most of the evacuation orders for Burbank were lifted to residents late Saturday.
The fire broke out Friday afternoon, and the cause is not yet know. At nearly 6000 acres, the La Tuna fire is now the largest fire by acreage ever in Los Angeles and a local emergency has been declared.
The entire state has been gripped in a heat wave, which has made the battle even more challenging for firefighters.
Salinas and King City each reached all-time high temperatures, according to the National Weather Service, of 107 and 115 degrees respectively.Numerous records were set for the day Saturday, including in San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa and at Oakland International Airport.On Friday, downtown San Francisco hit 106 degrees, breaking an all-time record that goes back 150 years.
As the heat wave is continues Sunday, citizens are using social media for updates and to offer assistance.
And, of course, many are offering prayers as well.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY