LA County says US Forest Service should allow aerial firefighting at night

LA County: Night aerial firefighting needed

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Fire Department says the U.S. Forest Service needs to change policy and allow helicopters to fight fires at night, especially in forests near urban areas.

The recommendation is in a review of department actions during the summer wildfire that spread over 250 square miles of the Angeles National Forest, destroyed 89 homes and left two firefighters dead.

The review sent to county leaders this week says there was a critical period in the first overnight hours of the fire in which helicopters could have been used. The Forest Service was in command at the time.

Regional Forest Service spokesman John Heil says not flying at night is a practice, not a policy. He says it’s generally not done because of safety concerns.

The review follows a Forest Service report that found the fire ballooned because of the inaccessible terrain and dense, dry brush.