Angeles National Forest

State transportation officials this week said they expect to reopen Angeles Crest Highway later this spring after they finish rebuilding large washouts, including a 200-foot-deep gorge 2.5 miles east of La Cañada Flintridge. The California Department of Transportation closed the mountainous pass in August 2009, when the massive Station fire scorched portions of the highway and left other sections vulnerable to rockslides. [Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect a spring opening date of the Angeles Crest Highway]

The threat of fire in the Angeles National Forest will be raised from "high" to "very high" on Sunday, U.S. Forest Service officials announced. The level, which is fourth in a six-tiered danger rating system, comes as forecasters predict a heat wave starting this weekend, when temperatures move from relatively mild to triple digits, according to the National Weather Service. Highs are expected to hover in the mid-90s through the weekend before reaching up to 104 degrees through Tuesday, according to the agency.

A congressional panel scheduled for Tuesday in Pasadena on the firefighting problems during the devastating Station fire has been postponed while lawmakers return to Washington D.C. for a special session on jobs-related legislation. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called lawmakers back for a rare August session to deal with a $26-billion jobs bill, meaning the four local representatives who scheduled the panel could no longer attend. No new date has been set for the hearing.

GLENDALE — Roughly $700,000 has been earmarked for improving the forest roads and trails that were destroyed last year during the Station fire, officials said. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) secured the earmark in the Interior Appropriations bill for restoring the 160,577 acres of scorched landscape that's in severe need of restoration. "The roads and trails have been eroded and degraded," said Richard Toyon, former forest ranger and president of the local nonprofit Volunteers Organizing in Conserving the Environment.

The Los Angeles County coroner's office is seeking the public's help in identifying a woman whose remains were found last year in the Angeles National Forest after the Station fire. Coroner's officials on Wednesday released a composite sketch of the Jane Doe, who officials believe was a white or Latino woman between the age of 20 and 40 at the time of death. The sketch was created using clay reconstruction technology. The woman's skull was found Dec. 26 in a burned-out area below Angeles Forest Highway, two days after hikers there discovered a male skull with a bullet hole, officials said.

The Los Angeles County coroner’s office is seeking the public’s help in identifying a woman whose remains were found last year in the Angeles National Forest after the Station fire. Coroner’s officials on Wednesday released a composite sketch of the Jane Doe, who officials believe was a white or Latino woman between the age of 20 and 40 at the time of death. The sketch was created using clay reconstruction technology. The woman’s skull was found on Dec. 26 in the burned-out area below Angeles Forest Highway, two days after hikers discovered a male skull with an apparent bullet hole in the same area, officials said.

GLENDALE — As the summer heat leads to increased fire danger, fire officials are anxiously awaiting the arrival of two Canadian aircraft, expected to touch down in September. Supervisor Mike Antonovich renewed a five-year contract with the Quebec government to lease two CL-415 "Super Scoopers" during Los Angeles County's fire season, officials said. The turboprops are expected to reach Los Angeles County on Sept. 1 and will remain until Nov. 31, officials said. The aircraft, which can be airborne in five minutes and fly for three hours without refueling, has been used countywide to battle stubborn blazes in rough terrain.

PASADENA — Rep. Adam Schiff on Friday announced the start of the long awaited study of the region’s hillsides that could ultimately result in the federal protection of local area. The announcement was a major milestone for Schiff (D-Burbank), who began lobbying for the so-called “Rim of the Valley” study in 2001. The study was authorized as part of federal legislation signed by President George W. Bush in 2008. Two years later, the study was allocated $500,000, which will begin with an extensive public outreach and exploration process this summer.

R ep. Adam Schiff on Wednesday called for the U.S. Forest Service to consider repealing nighttime flight restrictions, arguing they are needed in the critical infancy of a forest fire. Local officials have criticized the prohibition on nighttime water-dropping missions for allowing the Station fire last year to grow out of control in the initial days, eventually destroying scores of structures and killing two Los Angeles County firefighters. Testifying before a Senate subcommittee, Schiff (D-Burbank)

Sections of the Angeles National Forest closed by the initial Station fire response were scheduled to reopen today after U.S. Forest Service officials determined the areas were no longer dangerous. Starting today, the public can access the Magic Mountain Wilderness, large portions of Pleasant View, Horse Flats and the Millard Campground near La Cañada Flintridge, among other areas. The reopened portions were never burned by the massive Station fire, but fell under restricted areas established to protect the public from run off, debris and other impacts of the adjacent charred landscape, forest officials said.