California fire loses ground; route open

CASTAIC, Calif. — California highway authorities reopened nearly all lanes of a Southern California freeway Sunday as firefighters made progress on a wildfire that jumped across the road and spread across dry hillsides.

The fire broke out Saturday near Castaic in northern Los Angeles County. Pushed by 10-15 mph winds, it chewed through tinder-dry brush and jumped across the busy freeway, spreading across more than half a square mile.

The California Highway Patrol closed a stretch of the interstate for several hours as air tankers dropped retardant.

Two firefighters were taken to the hospital with burn injuries, said Andrew Mitchell, a spokesman for the Angeles National Forest.

The fire remained uncontained because of the mountainous terrain, but firefighters made progress overnight with the help of water-dropping aircraft and an aggressive ground attack, Mitchell said.

He said crews will take advantage of the beginning of a cooling trend Sunday to build containment lines.

Meanwhile, residents of a Northern California mountain town devastated by the huge Caldor Fire south of Lake Tahoe were allowed back Sunday to inspect the damage.

Most of Grizzly Flat’s homes, as well as the school, post office, church and fire station, were destroyed in the first days of the month-old fire. Evacuation orders were also lifted for homes along State Route 50 as containment of the 342-square-mile fire increased to 65%.

Firefighters were diverted to fight multiple overnight lightning fires when thunderstorms swept across the state Thursday night into Friday. The storms dropped light rain to slightly dampen the drought-stricken north, fire officials said.