Santa Anita has postponed Friday’s program to Thursday,  Jan. 16 because of concern over air quality caused by massive wildfires in Los Angeles County, the track announced on Thursday. The 10-race program scheduled for Friday will be conducted without being redrawn, according to track general manager Nate Newby. “The [California Horse Racing Board] has given us approval to move the card as is,” Newby said in an interview. “It’s going to be a 10-race program starting at noon.” The track said in a statement on Thursday that a decision will be made on Friday regarding racing scheduled for this Saturday and Sunday. The Saturday program includes five stakes for California-breds and is the most lucrative program of January. With the addition of racing on Jan. 16, there will be five days of consecutive racing that week through Jan. 20. The air quality level in Arcadia, Calif., where Santa Anita is located, was rated as unhealthy as of early Thursday afternoon. Several wildfires have devastated sections of Los Angeles County since Tuesday, notably in Pacific Palisades near the Pacific Ocean and in the Altadena/Pasadena area a few miles east of Santa Anita. Neighborhoods approximately two miles northeast of the track were ordered evacuated because of a fire that began in Altadena on Tuesday. The fire spread to neighboring cities and as of Thursday morning had consumed more than 10,600 acres and more than 1,000 structures, including homes and businesses, according to media reports. “We’ve had quite a few teammates who have lost their houses,” said Aidan Butler, the president of Santa Anita’s parent company, 1/ST Racing. “We’ll see what we can do to help.” Butler said the track sustained damage to the roofs of some barns and lost trees because of wind. There were high winds on Tuesday and Wednesday, which had largely dissipated by Thursday morning. Gusty winds are forecast to return late Thursday into Friday. “A few barns got a little roughed up, but nothing we can’t get fixed,” Butler said. “The trees were falling. Power went out for a little bit.” Flames from the nearby fires were visible from the track before dawn on Wednesday. Smoke was the main issue on Thursday. “It looks like we’re in good shape from the fire perspective,” Butler said. “The big worry is air quality.” Newby said helicopter water drops on the Altadena/Pasadena fire were visible from the Santa Anita grandstand on Thursday. On Thursday, horses were permitted to be jogged or galloped early during training hours. The option was reduced to joggers only for the final hour of training on Thursday. No workouts were allowed. The track told horsemen in a text message at lunchtime on Thursday that no workouts will be allowed on Friday and that the extent of training that will be allowed on Friday will be conveyed in a predawn message. Because of the fires, mandatory evacuation notices were issued for communities near Santa Anita that are home to many people in Southern California racing, including parts of Arcadia, Bradbury, Duarte, La Canada Flintridge, Monrovia, and Sierra Madre. Trainer Michael McCarthy and his family were evacuated from their home near Santa Anita. McCarthy returned home on Thursday morning. “Our house is standing,” he wrote in a text message. “We are incredibly fortunate. There are 30 or 40 homes in our close proximity that are gone. Chimneys and nothing else.” Trainer Phil D’Amato was at his home in Arcadia on Wednesday when a wildfire moved down toward the home’s backyard that abuts a steep hillside. “We were evacuated the night before,” he said. “I went back up there to check things out late morning. “We’re right up against the mountain with about five other houses on that side of the street. It burnt all the way down to the fence line. “I saw the flames coming down the hillside. As soon as that happened, a bunch of fire trucks came and attacked the fire. It was great timing. That was as far as the fire got.” D’Amato said damage to his property was limited to the loss of trees removed by a forestry team to prevent the spread of fire. He said his home was without power or water. D’Amato said his stable at Santa Anita was not affected. “The horses are safe and training today and slowly getting back to some normalcy,” he said. A red flag warning, indicating a high threat of fire, is in place for the mountain communities near Santa Anita and for western Los Angeles County and parts of Ventura County until Friday evening, according to the National Weather Service. Several school districts in Los Angeles County, including Arcadia Unified, canceled classes on Wednesday and Thursday. The fire in Pacific Palisades, about 33 miles west of Santa Anita, has been the largest in the county this week. By Thursday morning, the fire had consumed more than 12,800 acres, according to media reports. Neither fire had any containment as of Thursday morning. Wildfires have affected racing or training at Santa Anita numerous times in the last 32 years. In 2020, a wildfire in the mountains north of Santa Anita led to the cancellation of two days of racing because of smoke so severe that sunlight was noticeably reduced. Fires in nearby mountainsides occurred in 1993 and 2003 in the days before the Breeders’ Cup was held at Santa Anita. In 2017, a rapidly moving wildfire in northern San Diego County struck the San Luis Rey Downs training center in Bonsall, Calif., destroying eight barns and causing the deaths of 46 horses. Southern California has had an abnormally dry start to its rainy season in recent months, with rain totals far below recent winters. No rain is forecast for the next week, according to accuweather.com. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? 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