Thousands of firefighters aided by cooler weather made progress Saturday against three wildfires burning across Southern California.
The Airport, Bridge, and Line fires have threatened tens of thousands of homes and other structures since they dramatically escalated during a sustained triple-digit heat wave.
Airport Fire
The Airport Fire in Orange and Riverside counties fire has been difficult to tame because of the steep terrain and dry conditions — and because some areas hadn’t burned in decades. Reportedly sparked by workers using heavy equipment, it has burned more than 37 square miles (96 square kilometers).
“Although direct lines have been challenging to build due to rugged terrain, favorable weather conditions have supported their efforts,” the Saturday situation report from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
Eleven firefighters and two residents have been injured in the blaze, according to the Orange County Fire Authority. It destroyed at least 27 cabins in the Holy Jim Canyon area, authorities said.
It was 19% contained as of late Saturday.
Bridge Fire
Authorities have started scaling back evacuations at the largest fire in the region. The Bridge Fire east of Los Angeles has burned 81 square miles, torched at least 33 homes and six cabins, and forced the evacuation of 10,000 people. Two firefighters have been injured in the blaze, state fire officials said.
Operations section chief Don Freguila said Saturday that containment was improving, with nearly 2,500 firefighters working the lines as of Saturday.
“A lot of good work. We’re really beating this up and starting to make some good progress,” Freguila said.
The fire, which spread from San Gabriel Canyon above Glendora into San Bernardino County, has grown to 54,567 acres and continues to threaten 11,560 structures, but is now 9% contained, officials said Sunday.
To date, the fire has injured at least two people, destroyed 19 structures, and damaged six others, according to Cal Fire.
“On Saturday, firefighters continued establishing and strengthening direct containment lines while also constructing secondary contingency lines with dozers and hand crews,” Cal Fire said.
“Several helicopters working the hottest areas helped firefighters make progress, and additionally responded late this afternoon in an assist for containing a new fire start in the Lytle Creek area.
“In the rugged and steep terrain of the Sheep Mountain Wilderness below Mount Baden-Powell, firefighters gained entry in three main locations to construct dozer line and hand lines while aircraft assisted them with extinguishing hotspots.”
The weather is expected to be mostly favorable in the coming days, with high winds in higher elevations with low temperatures at night.
Fire officials said humidity is low in higher elevations, but in lower elevations, the marine layer and higher humidity were helping crews make “great progress in strengthening both primary and secondary containment lines in the southeast, south and southwest flanks of the fire, while also gaining depth in their mop-up operations.”
During a public meeting Saturday at Serrano High School in Phelan, the Incident Management Team told residents the areas burned by previous fires such as the 1997 Narrows Fire have helped slow the current fire. Residents were told evacuations would remain in place until the areas are safe.
The fire began at 2:12 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 8 near East Fork and Glendora Mountain roads, according to forest officials. It initially remained relatively small, but it exploded in size at the tail end of an extended heat wave on Tuesday, destroying dozens of structures as it burned into San Bernardino County.
It remains the largest active fire in the state.
Evacuation orders remain in effect for:
— the entire community of Wrightwood;
— Highway 138 south to Lone Pine Canyon and Highway 2 east to Lone Pine Canyon Road;
— Lone Pine Canyon from the community of Wrightwood to Highway 138/Lone Pine Canyon Road south to the forest;
— East Fork communities of Camp Williams Resort (cafe, mobile home park, campground) and River Community (near the resort); and
— Mt. Baldy Road, North Mountain Avenue and Shinn Roads from San Antonio Heights to Wrightwood and east to Cucamonga Peak.
Some 2,453 personnel were involved in the firefight, including 50 crews, 203 engines, 21 dozers, seven water tenders, and 13 helicopters.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna Wednesday said an off-duty sheriff’s deputy and two people with him in the fire zone were trapped by the flames near the Mount Baldy area. He said they were not injured and all three people were safely evacuated about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday and treated for minor injuries, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Although the flames advanced on Mountain High Ski Resort, officials at the popular destination posted on social media Wednesday that “all the main lifts and buildings survived with little to no damage.”
The South Coast Air Quality Management District extended an air quality advisory until at least 11 p.m. Sunday for most of the region due to smoke from all three major wildfires.
The cause of the Bridge Fire has not been determined.
The Line Fire
Authorities say a delivery driver purposely started the Line Fire in Southern California on Sept. 5. It has charred 59 square miles in the San Bernardino mountains, where people ski in the winter and mountain bike in the summer.
It was 36% contained as of Sunday morning. Cool weather over the next several days should help, fire officials said.
The Line Fire is burning through dense vegetation that grew after two back-to-back wet winters when snowstorms broke tree branches, leaving behind a lot of “dead and down fuel,” Cal Fire Operations Section Chief Jed Gaines said.
Three firefighters have been injured in the fire, according to Cal Fire.
The Big Bear Zoo said it moved all its animals to a zoo in the city of Palm Desert to protect them from the wildfires and escalating temperatures.
Arson-related charges have been filed against Justin Wayne Halstenberg, who is accused of starting the Line Fire. He is due to be arraigned on Monday according to the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office. Halstenberg’s mother, Connie Halstenberg, told the Los Angeles Times that her son “did not light that fire.”
The full extent of the damage caused by the blaze remains unclear, but San Bernardino County District Attorney Jason Anderson said at least one home was destroyed.
Scientists say climate change was a clear factor in exacerbating the trio of destructive wildfires.
Associated Press and City News Service contributed to this report.
