Businesses Disrupted by Wildfires

Business was returning to normal in some areas of the Santa Clarita Valley following two days of wildfires in the hillsides and canyons surrounding the city. The industrial park containing the offices of the Santa Clarita Valley Chamber was practically deserted on Monday, said organization President Larry Mankin. “Today [Tuesday] people are back to work and management is basically attempting to put business back in place,” Mankin said. In Calabasas in the west San Fernando Valley, wildfires from Malibu and destructive winds forced the Calabasas Chamber of Commerce on Sunday to cancel the second day of its annual Pumpkin Festival, a major fundraiser. Juan Bautista De Anza Park was not a safe place, with shredded tents and twisted metal due to the winds, said Chamber President Carol Washburn. “Instead of running a festival we moved people out safely and got them packed up and out of harms way,” Washburn said. More than 1,500 firefighters battled the Malibu blaze, which had burned about 3,000 acres in the Santa Monica Mountains by Tuesday. The Santa Clarita fires were more severe. One fire between Agua Dulce and Saugus, dubbed the Buckweed fire, burned more than 35,000 acres. A smaller fire broke out Monday night near Stevenson Ranch that neared Six Flags Magic Mountain theme park. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency for Los Angeles, Ventura and five other counties stretching the San Diego where wildfires burn and called out the National Guard to help fight the fires.