Smoke, ash envelope Southland as f ire explodes
Sand fire in Santa Clarita Valley threatens homes and has charred more than 20,000 acres.
Fueled by high winds, the Santa Clarita Valley brush fire expands to more than 20,000 acres, threatening hundreds of homes and fouling the air.
The brush fire raging in the rugged mountains in the Santa Clarita Valley exploded Saturday to more than 20,000 acres, threatening hundreds of homes and casting a pall of smoke and ash across Los Angeles County.
The Sand fire roared primarily through uninhabited areas near the 14 Freeway for much of the day, fueled by high winds and hillsides carpeted with tinder-like chaparral.
The blaze, first reported at 2 p.m. Friday, grew to nearly 5,500 acres by Saturday morning, then mushroomed by late evening as the winds began to shift, pushing flames closer to homes in a Santa Clarita neighborhood that abuts the Angeles National Forest, fire officials said.
Assisted by fixed-wing aircraft and water-dropping helicopters, more than 900 firefighters worked in tripledigit temperatures and low humidity to get ahead of the blaze. But the fire remained only 10% contained by the end of the day.
Strong winds from the northwest drove the flames up hills and into ravines that prevented fire crews from
digging lines, said Richard Lincon, a public information officer for the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
Decades without a major fire and years of drought left the valley primed for a fastmoving fire that was fueled by “excessive heat, low humidity, extreme dry fuels that have not burned for several decades,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich said during a news conference.
“Five years ago, if we had a similar fire, we would have probably caught [it] at the ridge,” Los Angeles County Fire Department chief Daryl L. Osby said during the news conference.
Late Saturday, mandatory evacuations were put in place for 1,500 homes in Little Tujunga, Sand and Placerita canyons.
A man’s body was found on Iron Canyon Road in an area affected by the fire Saturday evening. Sheriff ’s homicide detectives were investigating the death late Saturday. It was unclear whether the man had died in the fire.
Fire officials said late Saturday that structures had been destroyed or damaged by the fire in the Bear Divide and Sand Canyon areas, but did not give the number burned.
On the northbound 14, near the Sand Canyon Road exit, drivers in bumper-tobumper traffic used their wipers to keep ash off their windshields.
The blaze was far enough away that most Southland residents couldn’t see the flames. The smoke and ash, though, seemed to be everywhere.
The same winds fueling the Sand fire blew smoke across the Los Angeles Basin during the night Saturday, sending plumes billowing across the Southland that were visible from space.
The worst of the smoke moved directly southeast from Santa Clarita, hovering above the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, officials said.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued an alert for unhealthy air quality in portions of central Los Angeles and much of the those valleys.
Falling ash also forced the closure of public pools in Glendale and Pasadena.
Los Angeles County residents awoke Saturday to orange-pink skies and air that smelled like a campfire. Ash rained down for hours, leaving a dusting of white on patios, cars and porches.
The iPhone’s weather app described the Los Angeles forecast as “Smoke.”
Some Angelenos trooped outside with brooms, rags and feather dusters to remove ash and scoop silt from their swimming pools. Others snapped selfies wearing face masks.
On social media, residents shared photos of the sky, comparing the eerie light and billowing clouds to the glow of Mordor in “Lord of the Rings” and the sandstorm on Tatooine in “Star Wars.”
Others said the dusting of white powder coating doorsteps and mailboxes dredged up memories of snow days in less-temperate climes.
“L.A. doesn’t have weather?” one man quipped on Twitter. “We got like half an inch of ash last night.”
Others turned to the classics, saying the red skies recalled Pompeii, or the barren landscapes made famous in the post-apocalyptic novel “The Road.”
“We get a free vacation to the inside of Cormac McCarthy’s head!” Dan Telfer of Comedy Central’s “Midnight” said on Twitter.
Wildfires increase the particulate matter in the air, and the increased concentration of those particles can cause irritation to the eyes, nose and throat, said Jo Kay Ghosh, SCAQMD’s health effects officer.
People with asthma could experience wheezing and an increased risk of attacks. The poor air quality can also affect lung functions and people’s ability to take deep breaths.
Officials recommended that adults and children avoid vigorous outdoor activity and advised children, the elderly and anyone with a respiratory or heart condition to stay inside.
Where possible, residents should keep their windows shut and avoid appliances that would further distribute the particulates, such as dehumidifiers or whole-house fans.