1978 Agoura-Malibu firestorm
[3] The winds peak in the cooler fall and spring seasons, where hot air encounters high pressure in the dry southwest and travels westward into the Southern California coast––blowing at a rate of about forty miles per hour.Once the fuels caught fire, the dry, downslope Santa Ana winds fanned the flames as they grew at an exponentially fast rate, culminating in a series of wildfires throughout the region.12:38 p.m. -- Agoura is declared Level 1 (major emergency, fire management organization begins, "war room" procedures include expanded communications and support systems.)[10] The Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatched 300 firefighters to manage the Mandeville Canyon blaze, and ultimately faced a personnel shortage in the process.[3] According to Mandeville Canyon residents, the LAFD took a dangerously prolonged approach to managing the initial brush fires, witnesses citing a lack of manpower, and many emergency officials admitted that their resources were simply too limited to offer a more rapid response; for instance, Chief England recalled that "When we saw the speed it was moving, we tried to release equipment, but we were spread too thin".Apart from an explicit conflict of interest, it is difficult to discern whether a councilman has the authority to judge an adequate fire-fighting response, particularly when many officials were primarily concerned with staff rather than resources.[11] While the city did not amend Proposition 13 to offer greater support to fire departments, they were legally obligated to compensate property owners for the wildfire's damage.As the Santa Ana winds prompted the city's power lines to drop and spark the initial brush fires, they were held liable and eventually paid $8.5 million to twenty- two Mandeville residents and eight insurance companies.