Dry, ample fuel stokes wildfires amid torrid heat

LOS ANGELES — Bonedry vegetation fueled three wildfires near Los Angeles amid warnings Friday that the risk of new blazes erupting was high as temperatures spike and humidity levels drop during a statewide heat wave.

A huge forest fire that prompted evacuations north of Los Angeles near Lake Hughes was just 12% contained after threatening more than 5,400 homes. It has charred more than 18 square miles of brush and trees.

Cooler overnight temperatures helped firefighters increase containment, but hot, dry weather and gusty winds Friday brought dangerous fire conditions, officials said.

Recordbreaking heat is possible through the weekend, with tripledigit temperatures and unhealthy air predicted for many parts of the state.

Preliminary damage assessments found that at least five buildings burned in the area, but authorities said they believed more had been damaged or destroyed.

The blaze was particularly notable because it had became “plume dominated” — firefighter jargon for fires that produce their own weather conditions. The smoke plume essentially acts like a vacuum in the sky, sucking in oxygen from the surrounding area, creating wind and lowering the air pressure as heat pushes the soot and ash tens of thousands of feet up.

The heat wave expected to hit the region over the weekend could bring tripledigit temperatures to the Antelope Valley and pave the way for a repeat of extreme fire behavior, said UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain.

The worsethanaverage fire season for Southern California that forecasters predicted in the spring, when lateseason rains created another layer of grass, appears to be upon us, Swain said. In another month or so, the onshore winds will reverse, the Santa Ana winds will arrive, and everything will dry out even more.

There was no containment of a blaze that blackened foothills above the Los Angeles suburb of Azusa. It has churned through 2.3 square miles of brush but was moving away from homes. Evacuation orders issued to residents were lifted Friday.

Another blaze came dangerously close to a neighborhood in the city of Corona (Riverside County) before crews controlled it.

In Northern California, a fire in the community of Sloughhouse (Sacramento County) burned about 500 acres before firefighters stopped its forward spread. The Los Angeles Times contributed

to this report.

Apu Gomes / Tribune News Service Cars charred by a wildfire burning near Lake Hughes in northern Los Angeles County are seen Thursday next to the remains of a structure. At least five buildings were damaged in the area.