Southern California ablaze with 3 major wildfires: What to know

Several communities across Southern California remained under evacuation orders Wednesday as three separate wildfires continued to scorch dry, rugged terrain and destroy homes. 

The first of the three, San Bernardino’s Line Fire, ignited near Base Line Road in Highland last Thursday. By Sunday, it had exploded to 25,000 acres, prompting California Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency as the fire encroached on the communities of Running Springs, Arrowbear Lake, Forest Falls, Mountain Home Village and several campgrounds.

As of Wednesday morning, when officials surveyed the fire at 34,659 acres with 14% containment, there were no reports of widespread damage to structures.

Authorities have announced the arrest of a 34-year-old Norco man suspected of starting the fire.

As of Wednesday, the Bridge Fire had scorched nearly 48,000 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties with no containment. It was first reported as a brush fire in the Angeles National Forest around 2 p.m. Sunday and grew steadily until Tuesday evening when it surged to 34,000 acres and began torching structures.

“It was very, I would say, hellish-like,” Alex Luna, a 20-year-old missionary who heeded calls to evacuate Wrightwood, a community of 4,500 in San Bernardino County, told the Associated Press. “Ash was falling from the sky like if it was snowing.”

Authorities could not immediately confirm that homes had been lost in the fire, but news footage did show buildings ablaze. Incident commanders said more than 470 firefighters were battling the Bridge Fire, and the cause remained under investigation.

The Airport Fire erupted Monday afternoon in Orange County’s Trabuco Canyon, producing a menacing plume of smoke over the heavily populated areas of Rancho Santa Margarita, Lake Forest and Mission Viejo, among others. Evacuation orders and warnings were issued for several communities.

By Wednesday morning, Cal Fire said the blaze had crossed Ortega Highway and was “actively impinging upon structures.” Helicopter footage showed it had consumed homes and vehicles just west of Lake Elsinore in neighboring Riverside County.

Ryan LaMothe, whose home was destroyed by the Airport Fire, spoke to KTLA 5 News from a hotel in Temecula and described his harrowing escape from the flames.

“It was just like surrounding us, so I guess that’s where it got really scary because – there was no more exit. You had to drive through the flames to get out at that point,” LaMothe said.

Local authorities confirmed that the blaze was sparked by public works employees using heavy equipment near a remote-controlled airplane field in Trabuco Canyon.

Officials said the workers were moving large boulders to restrict access to vegetation off Trabuco Creek Road when sparks ignited the fire. When workers noticed the smoke coming from the loader’s basket, they immediately called 911 while attempting to put the fire out with extinguishers.

As of Wednesday morning, the Airport Fire stood at 22,376 acres with no containment.

Also Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that a federal grant had been secured to help with the costs of fighting the fire. In a status update, fire officials had previously stated that “resource availability is strained” due to the other wildfires in the area.

A total of five firefighters and two residents have been injured in the Airport Fire.

Some communications towers, cameras and other infrastructure have either been burned or are at risk of being damaged by fires, but no law enforcement communication disruptions were reported.

The battle against all three fires is expected to get a little easier as the week progresses. Cooler weather and higher humidity are forecast for much of Southern California. However, incident commanders warn that conditions are still generally unfavorable.

“Right now, in our season, we don’t get a lot of recovery from higher humidity,” said Cal Fire Battalion Chief Andrew Bennett. “In Southern California, the fuel is dry toward the end of the year, so our fire season is really just starting now.”