FIRE STARTERS: Investigators suspect arson in the...

FIRE STARTERS: Investigators suspect arson in the blazes that broke out in Ventura County last week, but firebugs aren’t always to blame. . . . The county’s biggest fire, a 1932 blaze in Matilija Canyon, started when a campfire got out of hand. The 1929 Santa Paula blaze was ignited by a downed power line. And the deadly Los Padres fire in 1972? Fireworks caused that one. . . . Los Padres National Forest, covering parts of Ventura and five other counties, has recorded 4,700 fires since 1900. Among the causes: lightning, plane crashes and sparks from trains.

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SMOKE SIGNALS: If there was one safe place in Ventura County to watch the fires, it was San Nicolas Island, 61 miles off Point Mugu. . . . “You can’t see the flames, but you can sure see all the smoke,” said Brandon Nahmias, who services Navy planes on the island. . . . The Santa Ana winds that fan fires often blow pollutants over the Channel Islands--so much that the Air Pollution Control District monitors smog on Anacapa. . . . Nahmias said it was hazy on San Nicolas, but he didn’t smell smoke.

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DISTANT MUSEUM: Speaking of islands, Santa Barbara Island now has a museum open to anyone willing to make the 3 1/2-hour trip (B5). . . . The one-square-mile island is treeless and uninhabited, except for a National Park Service ranger. But it has hiking trails and beaches where sea lions bask. . . . Another plus: From its peaks, you can see all the other Channel Islands except San Miguel. . . . Although it’s closer to Ventura County, Santa Barbara Island is in--where else?--Santa Barbara County.

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MORE MASQUERADES: Don’t pack those costumes away just yet. Today is Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, a time to honor deceased relatives and friends. . . . The holiday, which originated in Mexico, is “very festive, a very happy event,” said Violet Covington, who helped organize Ventura’s celebration. Processions of costumed celebrants begin at 5 p.m. at Mission San Buenaventura and at 6 p.m. on the Cal Lutheran campus.

Infamous Fires

Some of Ventura County’s most notorious brush fires:

Santa Paula, 1929: 25,000 acres, 200 homes; 1 civilian killed

Matilija Canyon, 1932: 219,000 acres

Simi Valley/Fillmore, 1970: 62,000 acres, 35 homes

Los Padres, 1972: 17,100 acres; 6 firefighters killed in helicopter crash

Wheeler Gorge, 1985: 119,000 acres; 12 homes

Sources: Times Archives; U.S. Forest Service