Weekend progress made against Southern California wildfires
LOS ANGELES — Firefighters made further gains over the weekend as they battled three wildfires in Southern California after authorities in Northern Nevada lifted final evacuation orders for all homes on Sunday.
Together, more than 8,000 people are battling the state’s three largest fires, all of which started during a heat wave with temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) early in the month.
The largest blaze is the 85-square-mile (220-square-kilometer) Bridge Fire, which exploded dramatically earlier this week in the Angeles National Forest east of Los Angeles. It has torched at least 49 structures and forced 10,000 people to evacuate. The fire was 9% contained as of Sunday morning, with firefighters gaining 4% overnight.
Officials said Sunday that the focus remains on the northwestern flank, where the fire is most active, but that coming rain and humidity will aid firefighting efforts.
“That’s not going to stop this fire, what it does allow is … operational people to go out and run the line,” fire behavior analyst Garret Hazelton said Saturday.
The Line Fire, which grew slightly overnight to 60 square miles (155 square kilometers) in the San Bernardino Mountains, was 36% contained on Sunday.
Officials said it was active early in the morning due to a dry air mass at higher altitudes, but cool conditions prevailed in the fire area. Light rain was possible late Sunday and into Monday.
Authorities have said that delivery person started on purpose the Line fire in Southern California on September 5.
Charges of arson have been filed against Justin Wayne Halstenberg, who is accused of starting the Line Fire. He will be arraigned Monday, the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office said. Halstenberg’s mother, Connie Halstenberg, told the Los Angeles Times that her son ‘didn’t start that fire’.
The fire at the airport in Orange and Riverside counties was still 38 square miles (96 square kilometers) in size and 19% contained as of Sunday.
“The weather is helping us and will continue to do so for a couple more days, so we’re making good progress,” said Albert Ward, division chief of the Orange County Fire Department.
According to the fire department, firefighting efforts are expected to increase significantly due to dense fog and high humidity on Sunday evening, and lower temperatures and light rain on Sunday and Monday.
Crews were able to gain access to an area previously blocked by a rockslide, but the southern edge of the fire is still marked by “very rugged, inaccessible terrain” that requires helicopters to bring crews in or a long hike, Ward said Sunday.
Despite the favorable weather, fire danger remains above 4,000 feet (1,200 meters), where it remains dry. Smoldering vegetation at high altitudes could roll down and ignite unburned vegetation, fire officials said.
In northern Nevada, Washoe County fire officials said all homes would be evacuated Sunday, the last of nearly 20,000 evacuees.
As of Sunday, the Davis fire was estimated to be 77% contained.
Officials said the fire is now classified as in a state of containment, with many restoration and repair projects underway. More than 600 personnel are currently working on the wildfire, which has destroyed 14 homes and burned nearly 9 square miles (23 square kilometers) of timber and brush along the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada near Lake Tahoe.
___
Berry reported from Phoenix, Arizona. Rodriguez reported from San Francisco.