The deaths of 29 horses at Padilla Ranch in Sylmar in this week’s Creek Fire is still freaking a lot of people out.
The family owners told reporters they’ve begun receiving hate mail, while county animal authorities were forced to detail their response that Tuesday (Dec. 5) as the flames ripped into the horse ranch above the 210 freeway.
County animal care services said they got a call at 8:45 am that day for assistance at the ranch. They said they found some animals alive, but that some horses that died burned to death inside barns because they were padlocked inside their stalls.
Initial footage of the scene showed charred padlocked stalls where horses once stood. This detail will likely keep criticism piling up on the Padilla family, if not a few citations or lawsuits.
L.A. is a bit tense as fires spread across Southern California, in the cocktail of high winds and very dry conditions, from the enormous Thomas Fire in Ventura, to fires popping up in Orange County and San Diego. The Lilac Fire in north San Diego County erupted yesterday and is spreading down to Camp Pendleton.