Los Angeles County has leased two additional SuperScooper firefighting aircraft from Canada as a precaution in case of fall wildfires in Southern California.
A statement from the office of county Supervisor Michael Antonovich says the additional CL-415s will augment two other SuperScoopers already leased from the government of Quebec. The extra planes are due to arrive on Oct. 9.
SuperScoopers are twin-engine water-dropping aircraft that reload by skimming the surface of lakes, scooping up 1,620 gallons in seconds.
Historically, fall brings high fire danger to Southern California because of seasonal Santa Ana winds. Four years have drought have further heightened the flammability of brush.
All four SuperScoopers could be returned to Canada as early as November if early and significant rainfall comes to the region as a result of the El Nino ocean-warming phenomenon.
