Pair of fires leap in size in Santa Clarita Valley; hundreds of firefighters do battle
[Update: Santa Clarita Valley brush fire quadruples in size amid high heat, rough terrain]
Firefighters are battling multiple brush fires that broke out miles from one another in the Santa Clarita Valley amid triple-digit temperatures Tuesday.
A brush fire near the edge of the Angeles National Forest swelled from 4 acres to 100 acres in less than two hours Tuesday afternoon, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
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County firefighters were assisting crews from the Angeles National Forest in fighting the Agua fire, which was reported at 2:12 p.m. near Soledad Canyon and Agua Dulce Canyon roads in Santa Clarita. Shortly after 4 p.m., about 200 firefighters from the two agencies were battling the blaze, according to the L.A. County Fire Department.
“Units on scene are making good progress slowing down the fire with ground crews and multiple water-dropping aircrafts,” the department said.
Ten firetrucks, three crews and several aircraft had been dispatched, said Celeste Morales, a spokesperson for Angeles National Forest. The fire was 0% contained Tuesday evening, and the blaze had the potential to grow more, Morales said.
No structural damage had been reported; one firefighter suffered an unspecified minor injury and was taken to a hospital, according to the Fire Department.
A ridge of high pressure continues to trap a ‘heat dome’ over Southern California, bringing risk of heat-related illness and wildfires.
It is unknown what started the fire, which remains under investigation, Morales said.
About eight miles away, a second fire that ignited Tuesday afternoon put a stop to incoming trains on Metrolink tracks near Sierra Highway and Jakes Way in Canyon Country, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
The department was dispatched at 1:36 p.m. and arrived shortly after, stopping the spread of the 1-acre fire by 2:12 p.m. The tracks were shut down while firefighters worked to put out the fire, which started with a tree before spreading to bristle brush near the tracks.
No injuries were reported, nor were any structures damaged. It is unknown whether rail services have resumed, according to a spokesperson for the department.
The police pursuit started near Bakersfield and ended in a brush fire in Santa Clarita. One person was taken to a hospital.
While firefighters battled the Agua fire, flames ignited about 13 miles away near North Sierra Highway and Needham Ranch. The Victor fire had injured one person and grown to about 60 acres by 7 p.m., with 10% containment.
L.A. County firefighters were dispatched at 3:25 p.m., according to a spokesperson for the department.
About 150 firefighters were working to contain the brush fire during the peak response, though some units had been released by Tuesday evening. The Los Angeles Fire Department was assisting with the blaze.
At about 5 p.m., the blaze was burning amid temperatures in the mid-90s and winds of 8 miles per hour with gusts up to 18 mph and a relative humidity of 28% to 33%, according to the National Weather Service.
Earlier in the afternoon, L.A. County fire crews were called to the scene of a small blaze that had started in the brush along the 5 Freeway in Santa Clarita after a police pursuit ended in a crash.
The pursuit started near Bakersfield and made its way south into Los Angeles County, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Alec Pereyda. Details are unclear, but the pursuit ended when the suspect crashed on the shoulder of the 5 near Lyons Avenue in Santa Clarita.
Firefighters were called to the scene around 12:45 p.m. and stopped the spread of the fire after it had burned about a quarter of an acre.
Times staff writers Nathan Solis and Jeremy Childs contributed to this report.
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