A firefighter battling the Woolsey Fire early Thursday morning suffered severe chest injuries after being hit by a vehicle.

According to California Highway Patrol, the firefighter, a Washington man in his 40s, was hit by a vehicle near Deer Creek on Pacific Coast Highway. The firefighter was deployed to California from South Kitsap Fire and Rescue in Washington, to assist in battling the Woosley Fire. 

"Our focus at this time is on the firefighter, his family, our fire district and our community," said the South Kitsap Fire Department in a statement. 

The firefighter was airlifted to Los Robles Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries.

The Woolsey Fire began one week ago in Ventura County, then jumped the 101 Freeway and spread toward Malibu. It has destroyed more than 500 structures and forced tens of thousands of evacuations.

Three people have been killed in the fire, estimated Thursday morning at about 98,000 acres with containment at 57 percent.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The newest version of this story can be found here, including the confirmed arrest and extradition of Johnny Bobbitt Jr. by Philadelphia police on Wednesday night. It will also host the livestream of a 2 p.m. press conference by prosecutors making a major announcement in the case at Old Burlington County Courthouse.

The New Jersey couple who became famous for raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for a homeless man after he helped with their disabled car — as did the homeless man himself — will all face charges for allegedly providing a false story in order to raise money for themselves, a source familiar with the case told NBC10.

Mark D'Amico, Kate McClure and Johnny Bobbitt Jr. will face charges including conspiracy and theft by deception, according to the source.

A complaint obtained by NBC10 alleges that the three conspired with one another to make up a false story in order to raise more than $400,000.

Investigators say the three deliberately prevented donors for their GoFundMe campaign from gaining information "that would affect their judgment about solicited contribution to that fundraising effort."

D'Amico and McClure turned themselves in Wednesday to Burlington County prosecutors, the source said. The source did not confirm whether or not Bobbitt turned himself in as well.

A lawyer for the couple had no comment Thursday. NBC10 has also reached out to a lawyer for Bobbitt for comment.

The three initially gained fame in 2017. The couple claimed Bobbitt used $20 to help McClure get gas when her car ran out on Interstate 95 in Philadelphia. McClure and D'Amico then launched a GoFundMe page to supposedly raise money for Bobbitt, and the page brought in over $400,000 from 14,000 contributors.

At first, the account led to appearances for Bobbitt and McClure on national TV programs. But it turned into a dispute over the money.

Bobbitt accused the couple of dipping into the funds and using them as a "personal piggy bank" to bankroll a lifestyle they couldn't afford.

Bobbitt later sued the couple over mismanagement of the funds and a judge ordered sworn statements to determine what happened to the cash, which Bobbitt's attorney, Chris Fallon, said had disappeared.

The couple denied any wrongdoing and accused Bobbitt of spending $25,000 in less than two weeks last year on drugs as well as paying for overdue legal bills and sending money to family.

The couple's lawyer, Ernest Badway, later said Bobbitt had gotten about $200,000. But Fallon said his client had received only about $75,000.

The couple also bought Bobbitt a camper with some of the cash and parked it on land McClure's family owns in New Jersey. But Bobbitt became homeless again after D'Amico told him in June that he had to leave the property.

In September, police raided the couple's home in Florence, New Jersey, hauling away a new BMW on a flatbed truck. Badway said that all the couple's personal and business financial statements, along with jewelry and cash, were seized in the raid.

At that point, officials said the couple was under investigation, though no charges had been filed.

D'Amico was arrested in September in Burlington County on an unrelated $500 warrant for an October 2017 traffic stop, according to officials. At the time, he was driving on a suspended license and also had a broken tail light. He also failed to appear in court on two separate occassions, according to court records.

While signs of November in other places run the bundle-up gamut, from people breaking out their heavy coats to piles of fallen leaves in front yards, we have a different sort of seasonal indicator here in Los Angeles: The rising of the mega trees.

We're talking, of course, about the huge firs that are often reassembled, branch by branch, once they're placed at various high-profile shopping centers around Southern California.

And they aren't assembled in a day; rather, they tend to show up before Halloween, and come together all November.

Or make that the first half of November, at least, as far as The Americana at Brand and The Grove are concerned.

For the two shopping destinations will once again flip various switches to deliver the shimmer to those who visit. Visit for free, we'll add: No ticket is required.

That shimmer lasts all season long, but the kick-off nights are a bit special, and over-the-top, and bring out revelers who want to see Santa and/or the singing of carols.

Coming up?

Keck Medicine of USC Presents: Christmas at The Americana at Brand on the evening of Thursday, Nov. 15. One musical highlight at the Glendale shopping center? The cast of "Love, Actually Live," the stage musical that's opening at The Wallis in Beverly Hills on Dec. 4, will perform.

Citi Presents: Christmas at The Grove will deliver that famous faux snowfall, around the park area, as well as a performance highlighting "A Home for the Holidays" on CBS. As always, arriving early for this event, which takes place in the Mid-City, near the Fairfax District and Beverly Grove, and The Americana lighting, is essential.

And for those hoping to check out the first-ever tree-lighting at the new Palisades Village, that's happening on Sunday, Nov. 25. And Compass Presents: Christmas at The Promenade at Westlake? The event was postponed due to the fires, but is expected to proceed on a new date: Nov. 30.

Still more tree-oriented to-dos are due, but once the middle of November arrives, in the form of the towering-tree events, you can pretty much say that although Christmas is six weeks away, it is, in a way, nearly here.

North Korea will not be required to provide a complete list of its nuclear weapons and missile sites before a second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Vice-President Mike Pence told NBC News Thursday. 

The U.S. has pressed the North for information on the entirety of its nuclear operations since an initial agreement for denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula was reached in June. But the Kim regime has refused to provide details of the nation's operations and postponed scheduled meetings with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New York last week. 

Now, the second summit between the two leaders — slated for after the New Year — will be where a "verifiable plan" to disclose the sites and weapons must be reached, Pence said. 

This week, a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies outlined a number of missile operating bases that the North Koreans have continued to develop since the Trump-Kim summit five months ago.

Trump confidante Roger Stone was told that Hillary Clinton's "campaign will die this week" six days before WikiLeaks began releasing her campaign chairman's emails, according to copies of text messages Stone provided to NBC News.

The message came from Stone's friend, radio host Randy Credico, who told Stone he had insights into WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's plans through Assange's lawyer.

The messages show that Credico appeared to be providing regular updates to Stone on Assange's plans ahead of the release of the hacked emails that changed the trajectory of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Stone is a focus of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, sources have said. Stone has denied colluding with WikiLeaks and said the messages he shared support his claim that his only information on WikiLeaks came from Credico.

Credico told NBC News that the messages don't show he "had any knowledge of anything that Assange was going to do because I didn't."

Inspired by a true friendship, "Green Book" takes us on a journey from the Bronx to the deep south during the Civil Rights Movement of the early 1960's. The Green Book itself was a real book used to guide African Americans to safe lodging, dining and business options while traveling in the Jim Crow south.

Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali play the unlikely companions who use the Green Book as their guide while navigating uncertain situations. While the Green Book is the titular character in the film, we hardly see it at all. Instead the movie focuses on friendship, class, and racial injustices of the time.

Tony Lipp (Mortensen) is an Italian-American bouncer and part time driver who is hired to drive Dr. Don Shirley (Ali) on a concert tour from Manhattan to the deep south and see that he gets safely to each performance. Shirley is a world-class pianist and although he is welcome to play for wealthy white crowds, he is not allowed to use the same restroom or accommodations.

The movie touches on racial themes that are still relevant today. We see the heartbreak and frustration with Ali who is one minute praised for his talent, and being forced to use an outhouse the next.

While the subject is heavy and should not be taken lightly, there is certainly a lighter feeling with this film, and even laugh out loud moments. That's due in large part to director Peter Farrelly.

"I don't think we realized it was going to be as funny as it is," Mortensen tells me during a recent press interview. "We've watched the movie a few times and I'm still laughing out loud when I see certain things."

Racial wrongs and civil rights might not seem that amusing, but Farrelly skillfully draws you into these characters and their story with humor without compromising the real life heartache and fear that black people felt during this time. Something both actors say is relevant today.

"This film right now is somewhat of an antidote to some of the things we're feeling bubble up on the surface right now." Ali said.

"Green Book" opens nationwide on November 16th.

A pre-winter storm was being blamed for five deaths as it spread icy conditions on roads in the South and Midwest on Wednesday before it hits the Northeast Thursday, NBC News reported.

Two people were killed and several dozen hurt when a tour bus headed to a casino overturned in Mississippi. In Arkansas, three people died in separate crashes on icy roads, prompting authorities to shut Interstate 40 overnight.

A winter weather advisory covered more than 89 million people up the East Coast from Washington, D.C., as officials prepared for storm damage.

Tens of thousands of people were without power in Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.

Another brush fire erupted in Santa Paula early Thursday morning.

Ventura County Fire Department received a call at 1:39 a.m. reporting the fire east bound of Highway 126 and east of Briggs Rd.

The Briggs fire has consumed 10 to 12 acres approximately but no homes are threatened and no evacuations have been issued.

Ventura County Fire said Briggs fire has the potential to reach 100 to 200 acres, but units battling the Woosley fire were called to the Santa Paula area to battle the new flames.

Donovan tends to do things on his own terms.

The white horse who lives on a Malibu ranch was rescued from a rough life of mistreatment about a dozen years ago in Sacramento, which explains why he's always been leary of humans.

So, it wasn't a surprise to Wendell Phillips, co-owner of Spunky’s Rescue Ranch, that Donovan didn't budge when flames from the 98,000-acre Woolsey Fire started licking at the Decker Canyon property. Phillips and three other horses had to evacuate without Donovan when the fire, which started in Ventura County before quickly burning into LA County and toward the ocean, got dangerously close.

"I let the horses go and opened the house up and opened the sanctuary up so everybody would have a chance," Phillips said.

Phillips left food and water out for Donovan, who remained standing near his usual spot near the fenceline.

His desperate strategy worked. Donovan was there on the hillside when he returned, his white coat standing out against the charred landscape.

"He's got a couple little burns on his nose and his tail's a whole lot shorter than it used to be," Phillips said.

And there's more good news. During the frantic hours of the evacuation, Phillips said he learned Donovan was going to be adopted.

As of Thursday morning, the Woolsey Fire had scorched through 98,362 acres and was 57 percent contained. It has destroyed an estimated 504 structures and damaged another 96.

Three deaths have been reported in connection with the fire.

An overturned tanker truck on the southbound 710 Freeway was blocking traffic early Thursday southeast of downtown Los Angeles.

The tanker was leaking oil, anti-freeze and diesel fuel on the road, just north of the 5 Freeway in the East Los Angeles area. No serious injuries were reported.

It was not immediately clear when lanes will reopen.

Meet Roxy, the pet of the week for Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018.

She's a sweet dog who gets along great with her kennel mates. She's still a puppy and will need some training. She has a lot of energy but will calm down when she is in your lap. Roxy would make a great addition to a family that is willing to put in the time to train and love her forever.

ID: A1825044

West Valley Center
20655 Plummer Street
Chatsworth, CA 91311
(818) 756-9325 (center)

The White House is looking for ways to remove an enemy of Turkish President Recep Erdogan from the U.S. in order to placate Turkey over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, two senior U.S. officials and two other people briefed on the requests told NBC News. 

Trump administration officials last month asked federal law enforcement agencies to examine legal ways of removing exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen in an attempt to persuade Erdogan to ease pressure on the Saudi government, the four sources said. Gulen has been living in Pennsylvania since the late 1990s.

Career officials at the agencies pushed back on the White House requests, the U.S. officials and people briefed on the requests said. 

"At first there were eye rolls, but once they realized it was a serious request, the career guys were furious," said a senior U.S. official involved in the process. 

The FBI and a spokesman for the National Security Council declined to comment, as did a lawyer for Gulen. The departments of state, justice and homeland security did not respond to requests for comment.

Preparing for Thanksgiving Day?

That can mean a host of different things, depending on the preparer, from inviting friends over, to asking friends if they have an extra couch for a surprise relative, to picking up canned cranberry, and then running to pick up more canned cranberry, because more relatives arrived.

But, surely, at the top of many Southern Californians' to-do lists is this all-important errand: Finding a way to connect, help, and shine some sunshine upon a neighbor, or several, during this holiday season.

There's a way to do that, right now, by making a donation of food or funds to the 7th annual Pasadena Thanksgiving Share a Meal.

Goods, too, are needed, and there's a list of requested items to peruse. Those items include flashlights, shampoo, socks, dryer sheets, and several other life and around-the-house necessities.

There are several donation drop-off locations listed, too.

The Share a Meal program will deliver dinner to over 500 people in 2018, as well as provide a host of activities for kids, including an assortment of games and face painting, too.

The partners on this kind-hearted happening?

Pasadena Fire Department and Pasadena Sandwich Company, which pays honor, through the annual event, to the memory of Stephen Fink. Mr. Fink, the popular eatery's founder, passed away in 2010 from amyloidosis disease.

Here's a great place to begin, if you'd like to help Share a Meal; there's still time to play an essential part in this holiday-lovely give-back campaign. Start now, start here.

Two elite Navy SEALs and two Marine Raiders were charged with felony murder in the June 2017 strangulation death of U.S. Army Green Beret Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar, NBC News reports.

The U.S. Navy brought the charges against the four service members on Tuesday, painting a gruesome picture of the effort to kill Melgar, 34.

The suspects are accused of driving to Marine quarters to obtain duct tape, breaking into Melgar's room while he was sleeping, restraining him with the duct tape, and strangling him in a chokehold. The four U.S. service members, which include two members of the famed SEAL Team Six, killed Melgar "while perpetrating a burglary," according to their charge sheets.

In addition to felony murder, the charges against the four men include conspiracy, obstruction of justice, hazing and burglary.

The red flag fire danger warning has now been lifted in the City of Los Angeles, but over the last few days while it was in effect, the City had promised to try to reduce the danger of new brush fires by sending outreach workers to homeless camps in wilderness areas.

NBC4's I-Team has been following the City's response to the homeless camp fire danger after the Skirball Fire last December. That fire started in a homeless camp and destroyed several homes. 

After the Skirball Fire in the Sepulveda Pass, LA Mayor Eric Garcetti had firefighters map out the locations of encampments in high fire danger zones -- like in the dry, brush-covered canyons in the Hollywood Hills next to hundreds of homes.

The Mayor said the plan was to visit the camps and encourage the people living there to move to shelters.

The City says it cannot force people living in the high fire danger zones to leave, even on days when the risk of a brush fire is most extreme.

City officials said a 30-acre fire in Griffith Park last Friday was traced to a homeless encampment and it nearly got out of control because so many of LA's firefighters and water-dropping helicopters were trying to stop the much larger, wind fueled brush fires in Ventura County.

By Sunday night, the city had declared its own Red Flag warning and special parking rules went into effect.

Then another fire started in a homeless encampment along Burbank Boulevard in the Sepulveda basin, and dozens of people ran from encampments in a creek bed. Another fire started Tuesday night in the Hansen Dam recreation area in Lake View Terrace, and firefighters say it too started in a homeless encampment.

Mayor Garcetti's plan as he described to NBC4 in August was to dispatch outreach workers from the LA Homeless Services Agency to check on camp sites, where many homeowners who live nearby have complained they can see people in camps, smoking, or lighting cooking and warming fires in the middle of the dry brush.

"...When we know that there are high risk days, just as we post fire warnings telling people to move their cars, those are appropriate days to take action, to prioritize and ask LAHSA to be able to go out to those places and engage and that's what our policy is now," he said at a news conference. 

Over the weekend, the LA Homeless Services Agency said it sent outreach workers to several known camp locations, including the Sepulveda Basin and Sepulveda Pass.

"A lot of the outreach teams have already worked the high severity zones," Matthew Tenchavez, who helps manage LAHSA's response to emergencies, said. He told NBC4 that eight to 10 people accepted shelter offers, the rest were offered face masks, water, and information about city resources.

"We're not law enforcement, so we can't get them to leave the encampments, but we do educate them, there's a fire going on, and we highly advise you to get out of those locations," he said. 

The LA City Fire Department says it sent extra brush fire patrols through the high fire danger zones. Firefighters looked for fires and reported the locations of homeless camps. But firefighters also do not have a role in enforcing laws, or trying to force the people in the camps to leave.

"We are very concerned, because, we found out sometimes in those homeless encampments people are cooking, they're providing themselves their own meals, but if those cooking fires should get out of hand, and get into the brush we have a bigger problem on our hands," said LAFD Deputy Chief Phillip Fligiel. 

City officials say people camping in state brush areas, or who are living on city-owned property, are violating the law. But the mayor's office says police can only force the campers to leave if the City spends the money to install hundreds of no trespassing signs.

Since that hasn't been done, an official says there can't be enforcement.

The mayor's office says the City is very aware of the risk and is trying to mitigate it within the law.

Five years after bringing swift justice to Gotham-themed San Francisco as Batkid, Miles Scott is enjoying a much more typical life for a 10-year-old boy.

Back in 2013, the shy youngster and leukemia survivor from Tulelake, California, captivated the Bay Area and beyond, busting criminals in the city by the bay, rescuing the San Francisco Giants mascot and earning a key to the city as part of his day-long Make-A-Wish Foundation experience.

Scott, now 10 and in the fifth grade, has taken a break from his crime-fighting duties to return to school, play baseball and help out on his family's farm, according to Make-A-Wish, the nonprofit organization that grants dream-come-true wishes to children suffering from critical illnesses. 

Undoubtedly the best part of Scott's young life is the fact that he's been in remission from leukemia for the last five years, according to Make-A-Wish. He was first diagnosed with the cancer at the age of one.

While Scott enjoys his normal life nowadays, his life was anything but five years ago Thursday. Donning his Batkid mask, a flowing cape and an all-black superhero ensemble, Scott stymied villains such as the Riddler and the Penguin to the cheers of thousands of people who crowded the streets of San Francisco to partake in the wish.

Scott's memorable day received the attention of, among others, the San Francisco Chronicle, which transformed its front page to showcase the wish, and even then-President Barack Obama, who delivered a special message via Vine to the crime-fighting boy.

More than 16,000 people RSVP'd to volunteer to help with the spectacle, according to Make-A-Wish. The number of tweets featuring the hashtags #SFBatkid or #Batkid soared beyond 545,500. The entire phenomenon was said to be discussed in at least 117 countries. 

Scott's monumental day was so illustrious it inspired a full-length documentary coined "Batkid Begins: The Wish Heard Around the World."

Moving quickly, with the desire to help, show support, and connect, when our neighbors are in need?

Southern Californians do so, quickly, with each and any new critical event, just as they're doing in the face of the current fires.

Businesses, too, famously stand up to stand for the people in the impacted communities, and we can expect a number of public-facing places, around the region, to host fundraisers in the weeks and months ahead.

A number of restaurants are jumping right into it, over the third weekend of November, and finding a place where you can dine out, and also know that some of your bill will go to fire relief, is the next step.

Here are a few eateries and breweries raising funds for fire relief in the days ahead. Do note dates, too, and if a special dish is involved:

The Crack Shack... at Westfield Century City and Pasadena will donate 100% of profits from its Coope Deville sandwich made on Saturday, Nov. 17 and Sunday, Nov. 18 to the Ventura County Community Foundation.

Tony's Darts Away... in Burbank will give a dollar to the Humane Society of Ventura County for each vegetarian Darts Away Jr. Burger sold from Nov. 16 through 18. 

The Old Chalet... in Eagle Rock will also donate a dollar to the same organization for each Lunazel Blanco Tequila sold, from Friday to Saturday. And at Mohawk Bend, in Echo Park? Order a pepperoni pizza or cheese pizza, Nov. 16 through 18, and know that a dollar will go to the Humane Society of Ventura County.

Prawn, located at Grand Central Market and Pasadena, will donate 100% of profits from its Fish & Chips and Lemonade, on Nov. 16 and 17, to the Ventura County Community Foundation.

And planning on a visit to an Artisanal Brewers Collective brewing location on Friday, Nov. 16, Saturday, Nov. 16, or Sunday, Nov. 18? If you make for The Stalking Horse, 6th & La Brea, Bluebird Brasserie, or Broxton, the collective will donate 20% of beer sales to the Humane Society of Ventura County.

The New Jersey couple and a homeless veteran at the center of a long-running $400,000 GoFundMe controversy have been charged with conspiracy and theft by deception for an alleged scheme that "hoodwinked an awful lot of people," authorities said Thursday.

GoFundMe said immediately after charges were filed that all 14,000 donors to the campaign last year would be refunded in full.

NBC10 first reported that Johnny Bobbitt Jr. and the South Jersey couple, Kate McClure and Mark D'Amico, would all face criminal charges of conspiracy and theft by deception on Thursday for the GoFundMe campaign that began in 2017.

Burlington County, New Jersey, Prosecutor Scott Caffina alleged the three conspired with one another to make up a story and raise more from online donors. The GoFundMe campaign garnered national headlines and news segments, eventually raising more than $400,000.

Authorities believe the three met at least a month before the campaign was launched, possibly on one of many trips McClure and D'Amico made to SugarHouse Casino.

Bobbitt was homeless and often stayed near an Interstate 95 off-ramp near the casino.

Caffina said that, within hours of the three launching the campaign on the GoFundMe website last November, McClure texted a friend that the majority of the story was fabricated.

"Ok, so wait. The gas part is completely made up. The guy isn't," McClure allegedly texted the friend after the campaign went live Nov. 10 with a photo of a smiling McClure and Bobbitt.

"So shush about the made up stuff," she added, according to Caffina.

D'Amico and McClure turned themselves in Wednesday to Burlington County prosecutors, the source said. On Thursday, James Gerrow, another attorney for McClure, released a statement on her behalf.

“I’m confident that in the end the evidence will reveal that Kate had only the best intentions," Gerrow said. "She was used by Mr. D’Amico and Mr Bobbitt and she thought throughout that this money was going to a homeless veteran. She was unaware that they had concocted this scheme. It wasn’t until September when meeting with prosecutors that she came to realize that she had been used by both of them.”

The backbone of the story was that Bobbitt used $20 to help McClure get gas when her car ran out on I-95 at the Girard Avenue exit. McClure and D'Amico then launched a GoFundMe page to supposedly raise money for Bobbitt, and the page brought in over $400,000 from 14,000 contributors.

At first, the account led to appearances for Bobbitt and McClure on national TV programs. But it turned into a dispute over the money.

Bobbitt accused the couple of dipping into the funds and using them as a "personal piggy bank" to bankroll a lifestyle they couldn't afford.

Bobbitt later sued the couple over mismanagement of the funds and a judge ordered sworn statements to determine what happened to the cash, which Bobbitt's attorney, Chris Fallon, said had disappeared.

The couple denied any wrongdoing and accused Bobbitt of spending $25,000 in less than two weeks last year on drugs as well as paying for overdue legal bills and sending money to family.

The couple's lawyer, Ernest Badway, later said Bobbitt had gotten about $200,000. But Fallon said his client had received only about $75,000.

The couple also bought Bobbitt a camper with some of the cash and parked it on land McClure's family owns in New Jersey. But Bobbitt became homeless again after D'Amico told him in June that he had to leave the property.

In September, police raided the couple's home in Florence, New Jersey, hauling away a new BMW on a flatbed truck. Badway said that all the couple's personal and business financial statements, along with jewelry and cash, were seized in the raid.

At that point, officials said the couple was under investigation, though no charges had been filed.

D'Amico was arrested in September in Burlington County on an unrelated $500 warrant for an October 2017 traffic stop, according to officials. At the time, he was driving on a suspended license and also had a broken tail light. He also failed to appear in court on two separate occassions, according to court records.

President Donald Trump will travel to California on Saturday to meet with people affected by the state's deadly and historic wildfires, according to the White House.

Details about locations President Trump will visit were not immediately available.

The visit was announced as the death toll in the Northern California Camp Fire grew to 56. Hundreds more remain unaccounted for in the most destructive and deadliest wildfire on record in California,which devastated the town of Paradise.

Nearly 9,000 homes have been destroyed.

In Southern California, firefighters were taking advantage of calmer wind conditions to increase containment of the 98,000-acre Woolsey Fire. Three deaths were reported in connection with the fire, which began Nov. 8 in Ventura County before burning into Los Angeles County and the Malibu area, destroying at least 500 structures.

Hundreds of thousands of residents across the state have been forced to evacuate. 

The visit will be on the heels of Trump's statements about "forest management" in California. As the fire roared through California communities, he tweeted: "There is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly forest fires in California except that forest management is so poor. Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests."

But scientists who research fire behavior said forest management did not play a major role. They said both nature, including years of drought and strong Santa Ana wind gusts that can quickly spread flames and embers, and humans share some blame. 

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke joined Gov. Jerry Brown this week on a visit to Paradise. 

"Now is not the time to point fingers," Zinke said. "There are lots of reasons these catastrophic fires are happening."

Brown said he spoke with Trump, who promised federal assistance.

"This is so devastating that I don't really have the words to describe it," Brown said.

The fires' causes remain under investigation. Both broke out at about the same time and place that two utility companies reported equipment problems.

Fall is historically one of the most dangerous times of the year for wildfires in California. Seven of the state's 10-most destructive wildfires occurred in October -- many fueled by monster winds, including Santa Ana gusts.

Much ado, or at least a genteel fuss, is made over Christmas decorations appearing on store shelves before Halloween.

But aficionados of farm animals, and fans of fried treats, and lovers of big, outdoor concerts under the stars don't mind one iota when whimsical word of the following summer arrives before Thanksgiving.

Which is just what happened on Thursday, Nov. 15 when the OC Fair revealed its 2019 theme: Acres of Fun.

If you follow your fair themes, then you know this is the third in a series for the Costa Mesa summertime spectacular.

The series has put the spotlight on agriculture, which might prompt you to recall that 2017's theme was "Farm Fresh Fun" while the most recent theme, in the summer of 2018, was "Free Your Inner Farmer."

"Acres of Fun" will be all about "land and the environment," with displays and designs that reflect that focus. You can see all, from July 12 through Aug. 11, 2019, during the fair's 23-day run (so, yep: It is open on select days.)

This isn't the only November-nice news out of the popular fair, which can trace its strong roots back to the late 19th century.

OC Fair Super Passes, which indeed gets the holder into all 23 days of the everything-and-more extravaganza, go on sale for the 2019 fair on Nov. 23, 2018 "... at the lowest price that will be offered." The price: $30.

Also? Weird Al was the first concert reveal of the 2019 season, as announced on Nov. 12, 2018. Catch the comedic legend at Pacific Amphitheatre on Aug. 8. Tickets go on sale on Dec. 1.