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CNN Sunday Morning
Firestorms Kill at Least 2 in California
Aired October 26, 2003 - 08:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN ANCHOR: East of Los Angeles, an amazing firenado. The swirling inferno was spawned by three firestorms raging in the San Bernadino foothills. The toll is staggering. Two people have died and more than 200 homes up in flames.
Thirty-seven thousand acres of woodlands have burned in and around San Bernardino National Forest. The fire is being fanned by the Santa Ana winds that roar over the crest of hills, raining hot embers on anything in its path. Can you imagine losing your home and a lifetime of memories to a wildfire? Sarah Acevedo of our Los Angeles affiliate KCBS shows us the grim reality, and it is not a pretty sight.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SARAH ACEVEDO, KCBS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rancho Cucamonga's backyard is on fire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Always with fires, we've always thought it's never been this close. I hope we don't lose everything. I kept soaking everything down. I wanted to stay there. They said, "No, you've got to go."
ACEVEDO: As fire trucks race down Barrel Street, residents of the Alta Loma area race up to their homes to save what they can.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on, come on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's going on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First my house burned down, now my mom's house burned down.
ACEVEDO (on camera): It's 8:15 at night, and firefighters are still getting no break. There are several strong gusts of winds. You can see the flames burning over there. Several fire trucks are coming up the hill right behind us. Take a look.
(voice-over): The night and the horror have just begun.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All the power's out up there. And I can't see anything up there. A lot of fire and a lot of smoke.
ACEVEDO: Jose Lopez (ph) tells me his home on Whirlaway (ph) is threatened. His efforts at hosing down burning backyard trees may have been futile. He doesn't know what's left of his house. Neither does Danny Vargas (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got a lot of -- I just don't want the house to go any members here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CALLEBS: You get a sense of the urgency in that report from Sarah Acevedo of CNN Los Angeles affiliate KCBS.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired October 26, 2003 - 08:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN ANCHOR: East of Los Angeles, an amazing firenado. The swirling inferno was spawned by three firestorms raging in the San Bernadino foothills. The toll is staggering. Two people have died and more than 200 homes up in flames.
Thirty-seven thousand acres of woodlands have burned in and around San Bernardino National Forest. The fire is being fanned by the Santa Ana winds that roar over the crest of hills, raining hot embers on anything in its path. Can you imagine losing your home and a lifetime of memories to a wildfire? Sarah Acevedo of our Los Angeles affiliate KCBS shows us the grim reality, and it is not a pretty sight.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SARAH ACEVEDO, KCBS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rancho Cucamonga's backyard is on fire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Always with fires, we've always thought it's never been this close. I hope we don't lose everything. I kept soaking everything down. I wanted to stay there. They said, "No, you've got to go."
ACEVEDO: As fire trucks race down Barrel Street, residents of the Alta Loma area race up to their homes to save what they can.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on, come on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's going on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First my house burned down, now my mom's house burned down.
ACEVEDO (on camera): It's 8:15 at night, and firefighters are still getting no break. There are several strong gusts of winds. You can see the flames burning over there. Several fire trucks are coming up the hill right behind us. Take a look.
(voice-over): The night and the horror have just begun.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All the power's out up there. And I can't see anything up there. A lot of fire and a lot of smoke.
ACEVEDO: Jose Lopez (ph) tells me his home on Whirlaway (ph) is threatened. His efforts at hosing down burning backyard trees may have been futile. He doesn't know what's left of his house. Neither does Danny Vargas (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got a lot of -- I just don't want the house to go any members here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CALLEBS: You get a sense of the urgency in that report from Sarah Acevedo of CNN Los Angeles affiliate KCBS.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
