There is a decent sized fire very close; it looks no more than 3-5 miles away.

If you know anything about it, leave a message in the comments.

UPDATE: Mrs. P. has turned on KCAL 9, which is showing live footage. We’ve had Santa Anas for the last couple of days at least and it’s been very warm, even at night.

She also says she was outside a few minutes ago and there was a big flash and the hillside went dark (except for the fire) for a second or two. Apparently the fire hit a transformer. But power did not stay off.

UPDATE x2: LAist has more here. AP here.

UPDATE x3: You can see homes on fire on the television; Mrs. P. watched one collapse. The L.A. Times is reporting that the next community over (Portuguese Bend) has been ordered to evacuate. (H/t DRJ.)

UPDATE x4: A photo of a home in flames, from the KTLA web site:

UPDATE x5: I thought I had said this at the outset, but I didn’t: I can see this fire clearly from my back yard. There is a tower of smoke and the wall of flame is visible; there are 4-5 helicopters in the air.

UPDATE x6: If you walk in our back yard, it smells like you’re sitting around the camp fire.

Mrs. P. saw another big blue flash and a nearby hillside has now lost power.

UPDATE x7: Jesus. I’m shocked that we still have power. The block immediately below us has lost power, and only a few houses towards the fire have lights on. The entire hillside between us and the fire is completely black.

Mrs. P. reports that the wind has picked up and is right in our face as we look towards the fire.

UPDATE x8: Another trip to the back yard. The wall of flame is gone and it looks a lot less menacing. The power is still out to virtually every home around us, however. It’s a miracle we still have power.

UPDATE x9: Link to live footage from KTLA. (H/t Apogee.) Turn down your sound before you click.

UPDATE x10: New L.A. Times story:

RANCHO PALOS VERDES– At least six homes have been destroyed by a fast moving brush fire that broke out in Rancho Palos Verdes shortly after 8:00 p.m. Several others structures are threatened by the flames and evacuations are underway.

The fire is burning near Ocean Trails Drive and Palos Verdes Drive, near the Trump National Golf Club, according to Captain Mike Brown of the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Evacuation orders have been issued for the streets of Portuguese Bend, Amber Sky, and Crest Road in Rancho Palos Verdes, Captain Sam Padilla of the Los Angeles County Fire Department told KTLA.

I just went to Google Maps and checked. As the crow flies, Portuguese Bend Road is about 6000 feet away — barely over a mile. Amber Sky at Crest Road is about two miles away.

UPDATE x11: Another trip to the back yard. The wall of flame is back.

I don’t think I’m going to sleep very well tonight.

UPDATE x12 AUGUST 28: At 6 a.m. this morning there was a horizontal layer of smog, fog, smoke, or who knows what in between us and the location of the fire. You can’t see flames any more and my impression is that it is either out, or has died down considerably.

UPDATE x13: The L.A. Times reports that much of the fire has been contained.

Indianapolis, Indiana:

An Indianapolis man was injured early Thursday morning when he was struck by lightning outside his home.

The incident happened at about midnight in the 400 block of South Butler Avenue.

UPDATE: This is part of my new series: “Another Isolated Incident.” Hey, if it works for other bloggers . . .

UPDATE x2 8-28-09 6:30 a.m.: For the record, since I see my point is already being misread and distorted by certain opponents of no-knock raids: the point here is not to make light of, or trivialize, the damage caused by search warrants executed on the wrong house. The only point I am making is that you can take any comparatively rare event and make it seem commonplace, simply by pointing out each instance of its occurrence. The fact that one can take rare events and make them seem commonplace by using this technique does not mean they are commonplace in a statistically meaningful sense.

I have chosen people getting struck by lightning for my examples, simply because that is the quintessential example of an event that people see as “rare.”

That does not mean that I am “comparing” or “drawing an analogy between” a random natural event and a phenomenon created by humans. It does not mean that I am arguing that such raids are not a problem, or that we don’t need to do anything to minimize them. Once again, the only point I am making is that you can take any comparatively rare event and make it seem commonplace, simply by pointing out each instance of its occurrence.

UPDATE x2 8-30-09: This comment further explains my position:

I’m putting the matter in perspective. You can be as disturbed as you like about even a single wrong-house raid; you can oppose drug raids or the drug war generally; go nuts! I’m not stopping you. Nor am I arguing that we shouldn’t take measures to stop such raids.

Am I making any argument regarding how many resources or how much effort we should put into stopping them? No, but I do expect that the point I am making should be taken into account as policymakers consider the matter. Fundamentally, I think that reporting every instance of these thing occurring is rhetorically effective, and if you oppose these raids, I can see why you’d report ‘em all. But I also think that, to the extent that running these incidents constantly under the title “Another Isolated Incident” suggests that the percentage of wrong-door raids is statistically significant, that suggestion is fallacious. The percentage may indeed be statistically significant, but if it is, that fact is not proved by evidence like “Look! It happened again!”

So my only “agenda” is to put the matter in perspective. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take it seriously.

What do you want to bet that my position will be portrayed otherwise — even though I link this post in every single post in the series?

Toronto, Canada:

A 5-year-old Canadian boy who was one of three people struck by lightning on a soccer field has died, a spokeswoman for a Toronto hospital says.

UPDATE: This post is part of an ongoing series. Explanation here.

Evans County, Georgia:

A 14-year-old boy was struck by lightning and seriously injured during football practice at a private school in rural Evans County, authorities said.

Witnesses reported hearing a loud boom and seeing a cloud of dust outside Pinewood Christian Academy when lightning struck Wednesday, sending football players scrambling from the practice field, said Claxton Fire Chief Harold Rogers.

UPDATE: This post is part of an ongoing series. Explanation here.

Tuxtla Gutierrez, Mexico:

Officials say at least two girls have been killed and four others seriously injured after being struck by lightning during an outdoor religious service in southern Mexico.

Chiapas state officials say two girls, ages 12 and 14, died after being struck by lightning on a soccer field in the city of Tuxtla Gutierrez.

UPDATE: This post is part of an ongoing series. Explanation here.

Winter Garden, Florida:

Two youth were struck by lightning in Winter Garden on Friday afternoon. According to Chief John Williamson, Winter Garden Fire Chief, a 12-year-old girl and her 14-year-old brother were standing underneath a tree when the lightning struck.

UPDATE: This post is part of an ongoing series. Explanation here.

Surry County, North Carolina:

Two Surry County firefighters were struck by lightning Thursday night while assisting with structure fires that broke out during a severe thunderstorm in the White Plains area.

The firefighters, who have not been identified, were at separate scenes when the incidents occurred between 7:30 and 8 p.m.

UPDATE: This post is part of an ongoing series. Explanation here.

Cape Coral, Florida:

Two women struck by lightning in one day in Cape Coral should be a reminder for others to take precautions, emergency officials said.

“If you can hear it, fear it,” said Don Cochran, acting deputy chief for the Cape Coral Fire Department.

The two women appeared shaken, but were able to walk and were taken to hospitals as a precaution.

UPDATE: This post is part of an ongoing series. Explanation here.

Farmington, New Mexico:

A fluke storm left one man in critical condition and his horse dead after the pair was struck by lightning Monday evening on County Road 5580.

UPDATE: This post is part of an ongoing series. Explanation here.

[Guest post by DRJ]

Obama’s Justice Department doesn’t seem to have any problem clearing Obama supporters accused of wrongdoing. First it was the Philadelphia poll watchers case, a case the Obama DOJ had already won but still dismissed.

Now the DOJ has reportedly killed a year-long criminal investigation into pay-for-play involving NM Governor Bill Richardson and a large Democratic donor:

“The decision not to pursue indictments was made by top Justice Department officials, according to a person familiar with the investigation, who asked not to be identified because federal officials had not disclosed results of the probe.

“It’s over. There’s nothing. It was killed in Washington,” the person told The Associated Press.”

Nothing to see here. Move along.

— DRJ