San Dimas Fire Adds to Work of Weary Crews

County firefighters, engaged in a week-long duel with a restless brush fire near Castaic, were sent scrambling on a second front Friday to snuff a blaze that threatened 20 homes and also forced the evacuation of dozens of horses near San Dimas.

The second fire started about 3:30 p.m., when sparks from a gas-driven wood chipper ignited dry brush near San Dimas Canyon Road and Maverick Drive. Precision strikes by five water-carrying helicopters and two planes helped a force of 280 firefighters and 30 engines tame the flames within hours, keeping the fire to a little more than 100 acres, officials said.

No property was lost and injuries were minor: One person suffered smoke inhalation and a firefighter was stung by a bee.

But the fire caused considerable consternation among residents, who fled in a suburban caravan of people, cars and four-footed beasts. Evacuees included 60 to 70 horses rounded up from the stables of Sycamore Canyon Ranch, where one witness said advancing smoke and fire caused panic among some of the animals.

“Some of them were hitting their heads on” the stables, said Debbie Colleasure, 25, who drove in from Covina to help guide the horses to safety. The animals were brought to a local equestrian center or boarded at the county fairgrounds in Pomona.

Clomping down San Dimas Canyon Road, some of the horses stopped to sample condominium lawns as skateboarders zipped between them. Riding her bike in the crowd was 15-year-old Loke Quinones, who said she was at the San Dimas library with her mother when they spied smoke rising from the ridge near their home.

“After that, we came up and saw the flames and stuff and--promise not to tell anybody about this?--we ran a red light getting up there,” Quinones said.

Once they arrived home, Quinones said she and her mother began to pack frantically while her father watered the roof. Sitting nervously on her bike, she fretted about the mixed-breed puppy that she said had been left at home.

“I don’t know what my dog’s going to do,” she said.

More than 50 miles away, 1,800 firefighters from the county, state and federal agencies and numerous Southland cities drew the noose tighter around a 21,300-acre fire that has menaced Castaic since Monday, damaging one home and destroying several outbuildings, vehicles and unoccupied trailers. That blaze was allegedly set by a 15-year-old San Fernando boy, who has pleaded not guilty to two counts of arson.

Firefighters said they had the so-called Marple fire, named for the canyon where it started, 55% contained and were confident that it would not damage any more structures on the southern end. But they said the intense heat and unpredictable winds could allow the fire, which has covered more than 33 square miles, to consume as much as 112 miles of brush in the remote forest in northern Los Angeles County.

Because much of the blaze is burning in steep, inaccessible mountain areas, containment has been difficult. A firebreak being dug around the blaze is expected to be finished by 6 p.m. Tuesday.

“We have a line halfway around the fire,” said Robert Brady, spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service. “We’re working hard to strengthen that line today so it becomes permanent.” In case the fire jumps that line, firefighters were working on a wider firebreak several miles away, Brady said.

With the worst apparently over, some of the more than 2,200 fire personnel who battled the blaze were sent home, leaving behind a contingent of about 1,870.

“The threat to houses or facilities has greatly diminished,” Brady said. “The fire laid down last night and laid down today.”

Costs associated with fighting the fire have climbed to $3 million, a number that will likely increase, officials said. The blaze has caused no serious injuries or deaths, but several firefighters have suffered minor injuries.

“One guy had both of his eyes swollen shut” as a result of bee stings, said L.A. County Firefighter paramedic Ed St. Andrew.

Hot, windy weather has hindered the fight. On Friday winds exceeded 20 mph and temperatures hit 106 degrees. Forecasters predicted more of the same for the holiday weekend.

Riccardi reported from San Dimas and Slater from Castaic.