Students evacuate throughout southern California due to wildfires
By Anusha Rao and Mina Jung
January 11, 2019
Filed under California Fires
When the Woolsey fire arrived in the city of Oak Park Friday, Nov. 9, residents evacuated to avoid the flames that came down the Santa Susana Mountains toward their homes. The fire was predicted to touch down in Oak Park at 11 p.m., prompting mandatory and voluntary evacuations that also affected...
Woolsey Fire destroys Gindling Hilltop Camp
By Juliette Setudeh-Nejad, Oak Park High School
December 28, 2018
Filed under California Fires
As the Woolsey fire burned through Malibu, many religious camps, including Gindling Hilltop, Camp were severely damaged. The Gindling Hilltop camp has been the location for the Oak Park High School senior year Life Skills retreat for the past 17 years, since 2002. For upcoming retreats, however, retreat...
Fire survivor shares experience
By Oliver Carter, Oak Park High School
December 21, 2018
Filed under California Fires
Over a year has passed since the Thomas Fire began on Dec. 4, 2017. The fire directly affected Ventura County and many families within, persisting until Jan. 12, 2018 after 1,063 structures were destroyed. Mindy Ehret lived in the neighborhood of Ondulando, Ventura, with her husband and two sons, a...
Helping Pets Hurt in the Camp Fire
By Lily Bonner, Abington High School
December 21, 2018
Filed under California Fires
From July until this fall, it seemed like all of California was burning. For months, a series of fires blazed across the state. These wildfires turned cities into ash. One of these fires, the Camp Fire, started on Nov. 8 and burned 153,336 acres. It burned until Nov. 25 when it was 100% contained. On...
Community grieves double tragedy
By Olivia Buccieri, Oak Park High School
December 21, 2018
Filed under California Fires
“I feel like it’s impossible to talk, at least in Thousand Oaks, about one tragedy without talking about the other one because of how close together they have been,” Los Angeles Times reporter Soumya Karlamangla said. Karlamangla drove to Thousand Oaks Nov. 8 from her house in Los Angeles to...
In times of destruction, many feel grateful to return home
By Anusha Rao and Mina Jung
December 21, 2018
Filed under California Fires
The Woolsey and Hill fires threatened many communities where Oak Park High School students live, forcing them to evacuate. Some students lost their homes, while others were more fortunate. Those who lived closer to mountains and hills where the fires descended tried to leave as soon as possible. ...
Reflecting on the California wildfire crisis
By Shreya Mishra and Shree Delwadia
December 19, 2018
Filed under California Fires
He feels a peculiar smell tingle his senses, and he remains confused for a few moments. However, he remembers the conversations he had a few hours back, and he is instantly nervous. He quickly jumps upon his feet as his thoughts run wildly through his mind. He plays a few options in his head, and it...
Deadly Camp Fire Brings Devastation to Butte County
By Jack Freeman, Woodside High School
December 19, 2018
Filed under California Fires
The Camp Fire was one of the most devastating fires in California’s history, burning 153,336 acres of land, destroying over 18,000 homes and structures, and killing 86 people in the process. The deadly blaze started in the small town of Paradise, near Chico in Butte County, eventually decimating ...
Deadly Woolsey Fire hits Jewish camps, schools, homes
By Clara Sandler, Shalhevet High School
December 13, 2018
Filed under California Fires
The Woolsey Fire ravaged Simi Valley, Agoura Hills, Calabasas, West Hills and Malibu, resulting in thousands of home evacuations, destroyed properties and displaced schools. Three Jewish summer camps were destroyed, and buildings were burned at the Ilan Ramon Jewish Day School in Agoura Hills and...
Recap of the Recent California Fires
By Mary Sabados and Katherine Sharafinski
December 12, 2018
Filed under California Fires
California just faced it deadliest and most destructive fire in the state's recorded history: the Camp Fire. It was almost exactly a year ago that the Thomas fire left many in Southern California devastated. Now, the Camp Fire is just one of the three fires that has scorched California this November. C...
Unhealthy Air Quality Interrupts Fundraising Friday
By Tessa Bertine, Woodside High School
December 4, 2018
Filed under California Fires
Woodside High Schools’ biannual Fundraising Friday was relocated to the old gym due to the unhealthy air quality caused by multiple wildfires occurring around California. The smoke from wildfires in Paradise and Malibu have polluted the air, making it unhealthy for students to be spending lots...
ASB field trip postponed due to air toxicity
By Maya Lip, Carlmont High School
December 3, 2018
Filed under California Fires
ASB students were anticipating their annual field trip in the wild, but because of unhealthy circumstances, it was delayed. The trip was supposed to take place at the YMCA Camp Jones Gulch in La Honda, California. The ASB Service Council was expected to leave at 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 9, and the...
Camp Fire Sparks Students to Wear Masks for Protection
By Sam Brook, Woodside High School
November 30, 2018
Filed under California Fires
Woodside, California is currently in a state of unhealthy air quality with an air index of 184 and visibility of only 2.5 miles. Woodside students have taken to the nurse’s office to acquire barrier masks for some protection against the smoky air. “I’m giving them out to potentially serve as a barrier an...
Frisco Fire Department helping battle blazes in California
By Melody Tavallaee, Liberty High School
November 30, 2018
Filed under California Fires
The Woolsey Fire has rampaged and spread to more than 200,000 acres across southern California. In the effort to help contain the fires, Frisco has deployed five firefighters and resources to serve the affected communities as part of the Texas Intrastate Fire Mutual Aid System. “Our goal is for th...
Camp Fire smoke burns sports schedules
By Mandy Hitchcock, Carlmont High School
November 30, 2018
Filed under California Fires
Up north, desperate evacuees flee the flames. Down here, residents are under an unsaid house arrest while a thick smoke drapes over the Bay Area city skylines. The spark that would evolve to the deadliest wildfire in the state’s history began early last Thursday morning, Nov. 8, in Butte County...
Jewish school, summer camps damaged or destroyed in Woolsey fire
By Clara Sandler, Jacob Joseph Lefkowitz Brooks, and Molly Litvak
November 30, 2018
Filed under California Fires
Jewish schools and camps have been hit hard by Southern California’s fires, with at least one day school and two camps reporting significant damage in the three-day-old blaze. The Ilan Ramon Jewish Day School in Agoura Hills, which was seen in flames on live television Friday afternoon; the Shalom Inst...