National

California's 'Day Fire' Keeps Burning -- and Costing

By Mandalit del Barco

Published September 29, 2006 at 2:17 PM PDT

This story was published more than 18 years ago.

Mandalit del Barco, NPR /

Major, a 5-year-old lion, stars as MGM's new "roaring lion" logo. He and 100 other exotic "acting animals" were briefly evacuated from Steve Martin's Working Wildlife ranch, nestled in the rugged hills north of Los Angeles. The animals are now back in their cages, but ready to evacuate again if the Day Fire theatens a second time.

Sasha, who played the role of Shere Khan in the recent live-action re-make of <em>The Jungle Book</em>, was among 100 animals at Steve Martin's Working Wildlife who had to evacuate and flee the advance of the Day Fire. — Sasha, who played the role of Shere Khan in the recent live-action re-make of *The Jungle Book*, was among 100 animals at Steve Martin's Working Wildlife who had to evacuate and flee the advance of the Day Fire.

One of the largest wildfires in Southern California's history is still claiming huge areas of forest land north of Los Angeles. The Day Fire, which started by accident on Labor Day, already has consumed nearly 200,000 acres. More than 4,200 firefighters are on the front lines of the blaze, trying to keep it away from populated areas on the Los Angeles-Ventura County border.

Meanwhile, it's costing more than a million dollars a day to fight the Day Fire.

Investigators say it may have started accidentally by someone burning trash. From there, the flames raced across the dry timber of the remote Los Padres National Forest. Firefighters say the rugged terrain and erratic weather changes have made it difficult to completely control, though the fickle winds have died down somewhat.

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Already, the cost of fighting the fires has topped $53 million.