January 23, 2014 - Colby fire in southern California (morning overpass)

Colby fire in southern California (morning overpass)

A wildfire started and spread quickly in the foothills of northeast Los Angeles on January 16, 2014. The plume of ash and smoke blanketed much of the metropolitan area and prompted air quality warnings.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this strikingly clear, true-color image of the Colby fire just before noon on Saturday January 16.

According to InciWeb, the fire started around 6 a.m. Pacific Time in the Angeles National Forest near Glendora, California. As of 3 p.m. local time, nearly 500 firefighters were working the fire, which had destroyed 1,700 acres and at least two homes at that time. Fire officials were concerned about gusty winds and extremely low humidity that could promote fire growth.

On January 21 the fire had ravaged 1,952 acres and 299 personnel were working the scene. At least two roads, Glendora Mountain Road and Ridge Road were closed. A total of 7 residences were damaged and 5 destroyed. Ten out buildings were also destroyed. Fortunately, by this date the fire was 98% contained, according to InciWeb, with full containment anticipated by January 22.

Image Facts
Satellite: Terra
Date Acquired: 1/16/2014
Resolutions: 1km ( B), 500m ( B), 250m ( B)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC