This fast-moving fire has eaten up very large areas of the Angeles National Forest and threatens tens of thousands of nearby homes. The fire has grown mostly due to topography and luckily there has been very little wind to push it deep into inhabited areas.

I live within less than 1/2 mile of one of the mandatory evacuation areas. We are experiencing very dense smoke and, as of this morning, heavy ash fall.

The attachment is a map generated by The Los Angeles Times showing the estimated perimeter and important locations concerning the fire.

I can't help with the perimeter or the imagery, there isn't much available on the professional websites in the way of GIS work on this fire, but I am able to shed some light on the "behind the scenes" information from a professional's point of view.

First, wildfires in California are managed by type:

A type 4 fire is called an "initial attack" fire, and is manageable with the first in responders functioning with a first or second alarm response, with little or no logistical and planning support. Type 4 fires should be suppressed within the first burning period, meaning they're out by the next day. The initial attack units carry all of what they need in the way of drinking water, hose, fuel, maps of the area, etc., so do not require much support.

A type 3 fire is called "extended attack", and results in burning beyond the first operational period. It is still manageable, usually, by the resources from the agency unit responsible for the fire, meaning within a USFS, BLM, or BIA Ranger District, a CalFIRE Ranger Unit, or a County Fire Department. There may be some logistical, information, and planning support, but not much.

A type 2 fire is managed by what is called a Type 2 team, a pre-designated group of commanders, operations, plans, logistics, finance, safety, information, and liaison people who respond to Type 2 incidents on a regular basis as a Team, and who work well together. A fire of this type will have gone past extended attack, requiring assistance from other agencies. These fires burn for several days, and usually require some kind of base camp facility to be set up in a nearby park or fairgrounds.

A type 1 fire, which is what the "Station" fire is, is the largest kind of natural (or man-made) disaster that we experience. Type 1 incidents include conflagrations like the "Station" fire, but they also include disasters of any kind: Hurricane Katrina and Iniki, the Northridge earthquake, even the Oklahoma City bombing, 9/11/2001, and the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, were managed as Type 1 incidents. Type 1 incidents are managed by Type 1 Teams (duh), sometimes multiple Type 1 teams operating on the same incident, which are used to address the complex array of geographical, logistical, political, financial, even cultural and natural resource, and other problems which are the result of these kinds of incidents. Type 1 incidents usually result in multiple base camps, a State and/or Federal disaster declaration, evacuations, and resources from around the entire region, even from around the nation, responding to assist. They usually run for weeks or months, and management teams (and the operational firefighters) rotate in and out, normally on a 2 or 3 week assignment.

Let us hope and pray that the firefighters in all capacities on the "Station" fire can work safely and effectively to protect the people, property, and natural resources in the San Gabriel mountains of the Angeles National Forest.

For anybody who is interested, HERE is a website with links to the management teams around the nation, Type 1 and Type 2, regional, CalFIRE, etc. The "Station" fire is currently being managed by California Interagency Incident Management Team #1 (CIIMT Team #1), and THIS is the CIIMT Team #1 website.

P.S. It's not a good sign that there isn't an accurate perimeter for the "Station" fire generated by the management team or Ranger District. That means that they've got their hands full and have no time for the nicer things like posting stuff to the Web. God bless. And thanks, Hill, for keeping us posted on the progress.

PP.SS. I did find a perimeter, although it's not in .kmz format: Look HERE. That's a good sign; they're making progress.

Here is a link to many images, mostly of the Station Fire, gathered by The Los Angeles Times.


Chelys satellite imagery of the Active plumes of the Station Fire. The same image is also available as an attachment below.

A half-mile from the mandatory evac area? That's the very definition of "close to home." Oy, Hill, maybe you should just go ahead and GO! I know you're smart enough to stay safe without my instruction, but...

(It seems your first link is broken.)

Time lapse of the fire's progress on August 30th:

That's a very cool video, Hill.

Prayers, blessings, and good thoughts for the families and co-workers of the two Los Angeles County firefighters who died in the line of duty last night on the Station fire. Their vehicle went over the side on one of the mountain trails, and rolled 400 feet down the mountain.

News Video HERE.

I got an accurate perimeter from the GeoMAC website, it's from yesterday (8/30/09) at around 9:00 p.m. local time:

Thanks. They've got it working!!!

Attached is the revised perimeter for 8-31-09. (orange outline)

Hill:

We all wish you and your neighbors well during this fire. We were hoping that the event of your 10000th post to the Google Earth Community Forums would be a happier time for you. We all have to wish for the safety of those who are working hard to put the fire out. Over the longer term, we should look forward to a time when communities and their planners consider how sustainable development patterns can be implemented to enable us to have both natural and residential areas in a situation designed for each to exist safely and sustainably.

The fire continuous to grow but is being stopped before it claims new structures. Where I live engine companies are here in force and the sound of rotor blades is almost constant. I'm feeling much better about at least this section of the perimeter.

Below is a recent image of the top of Mt Wilson captured from the solar tower camera. It's hard to gain access because so many are trying to use it at once.


Image from Mt Wilson at 11:55:33, 09/01/09
Source

Attached is the updated perimeter for the Station Fire, which now encloses about 121,000 acres ( about 190 sq mi).
Source: http://www.geomac.gov/ (Download does not work with FF; does work with IE)