WRIGHTWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Three major wildfires in Southern California expanded dramatically — burning homes, cars and horse stables in hillside communities and injuring at least a dozen people, officials said Wednesday.
In the tight-knit community of Wrightwood, trees burned behind homes as authorities implored residents to evacuate the exploding Bridge Fire. Erin Arias, a 39-year-old teacher, said she was racing up the mountain when she got the sudden order to leave and did, grabbing her passport and dog while the fire roared. On Wednesday, she and her husband doused water on the roof of their still-standing home. Their cat is missing, she said.
“It’s absolutely scary,” Arias said, looking at the burned embers of her neighbor’s home. “We’re really lucky.”
The wildfires have been endangering tens of thousands of homes and other structures across the region after they sprung to life during a triple-digit heat wave that finally broke Wednesday. Other major fires were burning across the West, including in Idaho, Oregon and Nevada, where about 20,000 people had to flee a blaze outside Reno.
California is only now heading into the teeth of the wildfire season but already has seen nearly three times as much acreage burn than during all of 2023. The White House said President Joe Biden was monitoring the wildfires in the West and urged residents to heed state and local evacuation orders.
The extent of the damage was not immediately known as firefighters battled multiple fires simultaneously. The three blazes include:
— The Airport Fire in Orange County that burned nearly 35 square miles (91 square kilometers), leaving in its wake charred cars and rubble and pushing into neighboring Riverside County. The fire was 0% contained Wednesday and reportedly sparked by heavy equipment operating in the area. Orange County Fire Capt. Steve Concialdi said eight firefighters were injured, mostly heat-related. One resident suffered smoke inhalation and another burns, he said.
— The Line Fire in the San Bernardino National Forest that charred 54 square miles (140 square kilometers) and injured three firefighters. Authorities said it was caused by arson and arrested a man Tuesday.
— The Bridge Fire east of Los Angeles that grew tenfold in a day, burning 75 square miles (194 square kilometers) and scorching homes in the community of Wrightwood. The cause of the fire was not immediately known. It was 0% contained Wednesday morning.
At least five homes burned in Wrightwood and flames ripped through a popular ski area but the resort’s buildings appeared to remain intact, said Janice Quick, president of the community’s chamber of commerce. The fire was still burning, she said, cautioning “the winds have picked up a little bit and something can flip on a dime.”
The fire has affected area ski resorts but it has not yet been safe to assess the damage, the U.S. Forest Service said in a statement.
Evacuation orders in Southern California were expanded as the wildfires grew late Tuesday. Cooler temperatures were expected to potentially start tempering fire activity as the week progresses.
In Riverside County, the Airport Fire reached El Cariso Village, a community of 250 people along Highway 74, late Tuesday while some residents scrambled to evacuate on the road clogged with fire trucks and firefighters, and the sky turned dark and began raining ash. An Associated Press photographer saw at least 10 homes and several cars engulfed in flames.
In San Bernardino County, evacuation orders included parts of the popular ski town Big Bear. Some 65,600 homes and buildings were under threat by the Line Fire, nearly double the number from early Tuesday, and residents along the southern edge of Big Bear Lake, a popular destination for anglers, mountain bikers and hikers, were told to leave.
The blaze blanketed the area with a thick cloud of dark smoke, which provided shade for firefighters trying to get ahead of winds expected later on Wednesday, said Fabian Herrera, a spokesperson for the Line Fire, which was 14% contained.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department announced Tuesday the arrest of a man from the town of Norco who was suspected of starting the Line Fire on Sept. 5 in Highland. He was charged with arson and was held in lieu of $80,000 bail. Officials did not specify what was used to start the fire.
On the Nevada border with California near Reno, the Davis Fire destroyed one home and a dozen structures and charred more than 8 square miles (21 square km) of timber and brush along the Sierra Nevada’s eastern front. Truckee Meadows Fire District Chief Charles Moore said he ordered off-duty firefighters back to work Wednesday as the National Weather Service forecast winds could gust up to 40 mph (64 kph), creating “a particularly dangerous situation.”
Jeremy Human, a U.S. Forest Service operations chief, said air tankers were trying to make some retardant drops before gusty winds likely forced the grounding of aircraft. Schools were closed in Washoe County and an evacuation center was moved farther from the flames.
“We’re doing our best to be prepared for the anticipated winds, the very dramatic weather day … and potential for either new starts or rapid rates of spread should something escape containment lines,” Human said.
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