More than 2,000 ordered to flee Calif. wildfires

By RAQUEL MARIA DILLON, Associated Press Writer

LOS ANGELES – At least 2,000 people were ordered to evacuate their homes in a wealthy seaside community as California's dry heat and low humidity made conditions ripe for conflagrations.

Residents in Rancho Palos Verdes were ordered to leave their homes late Thursday, Los Angeles County fire Capt. Mike Brown said. TV news footage showed structures on fire and at least one entirely engulfed in flames.

Fire officials could not confirm if any structures or homes had been damaged or destroyed.

Structures burned in the wealthy communities on the Palos Verdes Peninsula south of Los Angeles, an area known for their horse trails, spectacular Pacific views, pricey real estate and exclusive golf clubs. Suburbs on the foothills to the north of the city were evacuated as a slumbering fire suddenly roared to life Thursday evening.

The Terrenea Resort, a luxury hotel a couple miles from the fire, opened its door to locals who had to evacuate.

By midnight Friday, only two families took advantage of the offer but several others called to ask about the offer, said hotel spokeswoman Wendy Haase. The resort's usual weeknight rate is $264, but the rooms weren't fully booked so the managers decided to help out, she said.

"I talked to one mom and her child and a dog. They were pretty calm, all things considered," she said. "It's pretty late so everyone's just exhausted and wanted to get some sleep."

About 500 homes in La Canada Flintridge, a suburb just 12 miles north of downtown Los Angeles, also were ordered evacuated late Thursday as flames made their way slowly down from the San Gabriel Mountains, said Forest Service fire spokeswoman Diane Cahir.

The fire kicked up late Thursday afternoon as the blaze scorched at least 500 acres of heavy brush in steep and narrow canyons about 12 miles north of downtown Los Angeles.

Weather plagued fire crews across Southern California as temperatures in some areas rose toward triple digits and humidity levels headed downward. For a second day, the National Weather Service issued on Thursday a red flag warning of extreme fire conditions for many of California's central and southern mountain ranges.

Three days of low humidity and temperatures that hit 99 before noon Thursday in downtown Los Angeles sapped the brush of moisture.

In Monterey County, in the central coastal region of the state, 100 homes were evacuated about four miles from the community of Soledad. The fire had burned more than 2,000 acres of steep grasslands, or more than 3 square miles, since it was reported Thursday afternoon, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Capt. James Dellamonica said. The blaze has not been contained.

Another fire in the San Gabriel Mountains spread a lung-burning haze over much of metropolitan Los Angeles, and was 60 percent contained late Thursday after burning across 2,000 acres, or more than 3 square miles, said Capt. Jim Wilkins of the U.S. Forest Service.

Nearly 1,000 firefighters aided by bulldozers and a fleet of water- and fire retardant-dropping aircraft worked the fire's northeastern edge.

Wilkins said the area is so steep that "it's almost to the point where you need ropes" for firefighters to reach it.

The fire, believed caused by human action began Tuesday near a dam and reservoir in San Gabriel Canyon, a half-dozen miles above the city of Azusa.

Another fire, in the San Bernardino National Forest in Riverside County, had blackened 600 acres by Thursday evening and prompted authorities to issue a voluntary evacuation of 12 homes in the area near Hemet, said Forest Service fire spokeswoman Anabele Cornejo. She said about five people had left and that the fire was 5 percent contained.