Inaugural 747 Phoscheck Drop On Station Fire

A 747 leased from Evergreen Air did it's inaugural live phoscheck drop over the Station fire in the City of Acton today. The 747 jumbo jet did three passes over the live fire. Sorry for the shaky video, did it handheld.

Video footage by Ted Soqui © 2009

Monday's Station Fire Coverage

Started the day with a lunch meal served to me and my friend Jonathan Alcorn by four gentlemen of the C's corp., at the fire command center near Little Tujunga road.

Soon we embarked on a treacherous journey looking to cover and photograph the Station fire, up Little Tujunga road all the way to the 138 near Wrightwood. We crossed the California aqueduct and passed many Joshua trees. Finally we came to an area off the 14 freeway and saw two wide body jumbo jets, one 747 and one DC-10, drop huge loads of red phoscheck on the wild fire. Finally made it up to La Cresenta to watch fire crews stop the flames from burning homes.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

Photos Featured In September LA Magazine

Photos I shot of Lancaster State Prison for LA Magazine, are now published in the September issue of Los Angeles Magazine.

Was on assignment, with the amazing Joe Domanick, to document the only prison in Los Angeles County.

Lancaster was recording temps in the upper 100's and the prison's AC was on the fritz. The prisoners were on lock down for most of the week, Joe and I definitely got and ear and eye full.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009 Los Angeles Magazine

Station Fire Smoke Plume

A smoke plume from the Station Fire far above the Griffith Observatory today. The plumes of ash, smoke, and water vapor can rise up to 20,000 plus feet.

Photo by Ted Soqui © 2009

Smokey Pasadena Morning

Smoke from the Station fire engulfs the city of Pasadena this morning.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

Calling In A Perfect Water Drop

Here what a perfect water drop from a Calfire chopper looks like. This footage was taken today in the arroyo next to eastern La Canada.

Footage by Ted Soqui © 2009

Station Fire Saturday Afternoon

Views of the Station fire burning the La Cresenta Valley area. Smoke columns rose to 25,000 feet over Mt. Lukens. The fire is now two ridges away from entering the city of LA, according to LA Fire dept. officials.

The fire sizzled down the arroyo at the east end of La Canada, just lightly scorching some million dollar properties.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

HTS S-64 Skycrane Water Fill Up

Ever wonder what it's like to be in a full on hurricane? Stand near a S-64 Skycrane helicopter as it fills it's tanks with pond water. Takes about a minute and a half to do, longest minute and a half ever.

Several helicopters used a small pond at a golf course in La Canada to fill up with water to fight the stubborn Station fire.

Footage by Ted Soqui © 2009

Station Fire Day 2

Scenes from the stubborn Station fire burning in the foothills above La Canada.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

La Canada's Conflagration

The Station fire burning in the foothills above La Canada.

Photo and footage by Ted Soqui © 2009

MJ Lives @ Madame Tussauds

Madame Tussauds Hollywood unveiled a new Michael Jackson wax figure today. The wax figure, which Jackson sat for, cost $300,000 dollars to fabricate, that's a lot of candles.

Fans will be able to pose and take photos with the figure beginning tomorrow at Madame Tussauds Hollywood.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

Dominick Dunne 1925-2009

Had the privilege to have one of my photos illustrate a story he wrote for Vanity Fair on OJ Simpson.

Dominick was always a gentleman journalist, he will be missed from the ever shrinking professional LA press corp.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

Uncle Teddy 1932-2009

Goodbye, Uncle Teddy...

Photo by Ted Soqui © 2009

Chris Brown Sentenced to Five Years, Probation

Singer Chris Brown was sentenced to today to five years probation for clobbering his then girlfriend to within an inch of her life. He will serve his "sentence" somewhere in his home state of Virginia, where the crime did not occur, cleaning up graffiti or doing some "service" like that.

Photo by Ted Soqui © 2009

Monday Morning

Seen @ Hollywood and Vermont this morning.

Photo by Ted Soqui © 2009

AFL-CIO Join Pro Carwash Workers Rally

AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney spoke on behalf of carwash workers rights at a rally held in front of the Vermont Carwash located at Vermont and Hollywood Blvd. Union workers from all over the city attended the rally to help support the carwash workers of LA to form and join a union.

A giant billboard that had a pro union message advertisement and was to have served as a background for the event, was taken down before rally was to begin. The billboard was taken by CBS down due to "pressure from the carwash owners" according to pro union representatives, the billboard is located on the carwash property.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

Defacto Prius Ads Invade SoCal Highways.

Advertisements made of water loving non-native plants and flowers will be popping up along various L.A. public highways. The non-advertisement advertisements are part of a new marketing concept by Toyota to push the new 2010 ugly assed Prius on to L.A. drivers. The campaign designed by Saatchi and Saatchi is entitled "Harmony between man, nature and machine." In return for the prime space, Toyota will landscape a total of 3 acres around the square flowered uninspired ad.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa along with Caltrans and Toyota officials help to launch and present the flower rectangle today at a press conference. There will a be a total of 7 Prius ads around the public freeways of Los Angeles from this program.

The first rectangle is at the Alpine overpass on the 110 freeway. Missing the supergraphics already. Wanna save the environment, ride a bike.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009

Robbery Suspect Caught By North East LAPD Units

A mask wearing robbery suspect was spotted running from a bottle/can recycling business that he just robbed by LAPD unit that just happened to be driving by. The suspect pistol whipped and robbed an employee of the recycling business on 6152 Myosotis Ave in Highland Park, and ran off right past the LAPD unit. The suspect hid under a camper truck on Ruby Place, not far from the crime scene. A LAPD air unit circled over the general area of where the robber was spotted, calling out on their bullhorn for him to give up. More North East units showed up with a police dog and shotguns. The dog quickly found the suspect, and the officers retrieved the belligerent and spitting suspect from under the camper. The suspect was transported by ambulance from the scene.

Photos by Ted Soqui c 2009

Mallika Sherawat Receives Honorary LA Citizenship

Indian film star Mallika Sherawat received honorary L.A. citizenship today from the L.A. City Council. Council people Jose Huizar and Tom LaBonge presented Mallika with a plaque during today's council meeting. Yanni, who wrote a song about the star, was also in attendance.

Photos by Ted Soqui c 2009

WBC Heavyweight Championship Press Conference @ Staples Center

Boxer Vitali Klitschko (37-2) will face off again Cristobal Arreola (27-0) on Sept. 26, 2009 at the Staples Center. Both fighters claim the LA area as their home, but Arreola will have the clear hometown advantage. Vitali will be defending his WBC title against a fighter who is ten years younger and who is known to pack a serious punch. Both fighters were very respectful of each other during the press conference. Vitali claimed he didn't know who would be victorious, but said he would give his best effort and the fans would see a good fight.

HBO fight announcer Larry Merchant was spotted at the event.

I predict the fitter Klitschko will win if the fight goes past 5 rounds.

Photos by Ted Soqui © 2009