A state of emergency was declared Tuesday for Los Angeles County, where the Sand fire has scorched 37,701 acres, destroyed homes and led to at least one fatality in Santa Clarita Valley.
Acting Gov. Tom Torlakson, the state’s top education official who is filling in this week while Gov. Jerry Brown attends the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, issued the emergency order, a move that helps quickly get aid to affected communities.
An emergency order was also issued for Monterey County, where firefighters are battling the Soberanes fire.
Nearly 3,000 firefighters continued Tuesday evening to battle the Sand fire, which was 25% contained, according to fire officials.
“There’s still a lot of firefighting to be done,” U.S. Forest Service spokesman Justin Correll said.
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Aurora Harris Heller, 62, left, comforts the owner of a home destroyed in the Sand fire in Santa Clarita.
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The charred remains of a statue stand on a drive on North Iron Canyon Road, where two homes were destroyed in the Sand fire in Santa Clarita.
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Firefighters battle a spot fire along Soledad Canyon Road near Agua Dulce on Tuesday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters are enveloped in thick smoke while working along Soledad Canyon Road near Agua Dulce on Tuesday.
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Two charred vehicles can be seen on Iron Canyon Road, near where a person died when the Sand fire swept through Santa Clarita.
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One of two homes destroyed by the Sand fire is reduced to rubble and ash on Iron Canyon Road in Santa Clarita.
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Aurora Harris Heller is distraught over the death of her neighbor, who was killed when the Sand fire tore through Iron Canyon Road in Santa Clarita.
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Riverside firefighter Mark Powell douses a smoldering structure on Iron Canyon Road in Santa Clarita.
(Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 9/76
Robert Heller walks back with his neighbor’s horses after evacuation orders were lifted for the residents of Iron Canyon Road in Santa Clarita.
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Heat from flames pushes firefighters back as they monitor a flare-up along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
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A helicopter drops fire retardant on a ridge above Placerita Canyon Road in Santa Clarita as firefighters work to gain the upper hand on the Sand fire on Monday.
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Los Angeles County firefighters Kevin Bowers, left, and Pat Hanrahan are watchful as a plume of smoke builds in the mountains along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
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A firefighting jumbo jet drops fire retardant on a ridgeline above Placerita Canyon Road in Santa Clarita on Monday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 14/76
A Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy checks identification of residents returning to their homes on Sand Canyon Road on Monday after evacuations were lifted.
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A burned-out machine shop destroyed in the Sand fire sits below a plume of smoke along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
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Smoke blocks out the sun as flames consume dry brush near Soledad Canyon Road in the mountains near Acton on Monday.
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Burned-out vehicles are left behind on Oak Springs Canyon Road in Canyon Country.
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Los Angeles County firefighter Ralph Solis of Engine 127 sprays foam onto a tree still smoldering along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
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Stephanie Spalter looks at the remnants of a machine shop that was destroyed in the Sand fire near Acton on Monday.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 20/76
Fire flares up in brush along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 21/76
Los Angeles County firefighter engineer Pat Hanrahan from Engine 208 works to put out a smoldering fire burning in equipment behind a home along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 22/76
Los Angeles County firefighter Roman Legaspi from Engine 208 works to douse hot spots behind buildings along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
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The husks of mailboxes litter the charred ground on Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
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U.S. Forest Service firefighters Edward Perez, left, Jovanny Cruz and Derek Meyers work to douse hot spots.
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Los Angeles County fire crews put out hot spots in a storage building that burned along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Monday.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 26/76
An intense fire left behind burned remnants along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton.
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Nearly 3,000 firefighters converge on Golden Valley High School, the Sand fire command center, for deployment orders in Santa Clarita on Monday morning.
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Smoke from the Sand fire obscures the view in Santa Clarita on Monday morning.
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A helicopter makes a water drop on the Sand fire along Placerita Canyon Road near Santa Clarita on Sunday night. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters remove brush as they battle the Sand fire along Placerita Canyon Road near Santa Clarita on Sunday night.
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Firefighters battle the Sand fire along Placerita Canyon Road near Santa Clarita on Sunday night.
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Onlookers gather at a shopping mall along Golden Valley Road in Santa Clarita to watch the Sand fire burn in the hills above the city on Sunday night.
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Evacuated residents watch as the Sand fire burns through the San Gabriel Mountains on Sunday.
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A pall of smoke from the Sand fire hangs over the desert mountains as the sun sets near Acton.
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An L.A. County helicopter makes a water drop along Placerita Canyon Road as the Sand fire burns in the San Gabriel Mountains on Sunday.
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Traffic from a shopping mall along Golden Valley Road in Santa Clarita is diverted away from the flames of the Sand fire as it burns in the hills above the city Sunday night.
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A firefighter keeps watch on the path of the Sand fire as it burns out of control along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton.
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A firefighter sets a backfire as the Sand fire burns out of control along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Sunday.
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The Sand fire burns along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton, threatening homes and other structures in its way.
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The Sand fire burns along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton.
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The wildfire in the Santa Clarita Valley area has grown to more than 22,000 acres, prompting new evacuations.
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A firefighter keeps watch on the path of the Sand fire as it burns out of control along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton.
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The brush fire in the Santa Clarita Valley area has burned 18 homes.
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A firetruck is parked in front of a home in the Santa Clarita Valley.
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A firefighting helicopter drops water on the Sand fire as it burns out of control along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Sunday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters battle the Sand fire along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Sunday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Ryan Alaniz, 6, waits for his parents to load the family car and evacuate the KOA Campground along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Sunday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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A firefighter sets backfires along a ridge as the Sand fire burns out of control along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Sunday.
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A firefighting helicopter hovers close to the flames from the Sand fire as it burns out of control along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton on Sunday.
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The husk of a burned-out residence sits along Little Tujunga Canyon Road.
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Vehicles and other objects consumed by the Sand Fire litter Little Tujunga Canyon Road.
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Sand Canyon evacuees wait to be allowed back to their homes.
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Firefighters put out hot spots at Sable Ranch in Santa Clarita after the Sand fire swept through the area on Sunday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters chop down burned vegetation and put out hot spots at Sable Ranch in Santa Clarita on Sunday.
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A charred tree stands over the ruins of a home along Little Tujunga Canyon Road near Santa Clarita.
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A burned-out shell is all that remains of a home along Little Tujunga Canyon Road near Santa Clarita after the Sand fire swept through the area on Sunday.
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A smoldering home sits off the 26700 block of Iron Canyon Road on Sunday morning.
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Los Angeles County firefighter Anders Heinstedt mops up hot spots at Sable Ranch in Santa Clarita on Sunday. The ranch is used for movie and TV production. Several of the sets, including one for Fox’s “Utopia,” were destroyed by the Sand fire.
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Buildings and cars are drenched in Phos-Chek, a pink fire retardant, at Sable Ranch in Santa Clarita.
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Rob Chauvie says he was helping his sister evacuate during the Sand fire when he was doused with Phos-Chek, a fire-retardant, in Santa Clarita.
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Sand fire evacuees pass the time at Hart High School in Newhall on Sunday.
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A house burns along Little Tujunga Canyon Road as the Sand fire rages near Santa Clarita.
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AJ Moberg, 15, waters down the roof of his family’s house Saturday as a plane dumping fire retardant flies overhead.
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A burned van and trailer sit along Little Tujunga Canyon Road.
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A truck and a house burn along Little Tujunga Canyon Road.
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Seth Moberg, 16, gathers belongings from his family’s house on Sand Canyon Road as the Sand fire approaches in Santa Clarita.
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AJ Moberg, 15, waters down the roof of his family’s house on Sanf Canyon Road as the Sand fire approaches in Santa Clarita on Saturday.
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A view of the massive cloud from the Sand fire, as seen from Alameda and 6th streets in Los Angeles.
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Women evacuate horses along Sand Canyon Road as the Sand fire approaches in Santa Clarita. Hundreds of other animals also were evacuated.
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Flames from the Sand fire burn a hillside near Little Tujunga Canyon on Saturday.
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AJ Moberg, 15, waters down the roof of his family’s house on Sand Canyon Road.
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Charlie Erasmo takes pictures of water-dropping helicopters as they come in for water to battle the Sand fire in Santa Clarita on Saturday.
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A water-dropping helicopter makes a run as the Sand fire burns in Santa Clarita on Saturday morning.
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L.A. County firefighter Joshua Miramontes with Engine 82 works the fast-growing brush fire east of Santa Clarita.
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A helicopter drops water on the fast-growing brush fire east of Santa Clarita. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
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The Santa Clarita wildfire is visible from the Top of Topanga Overlook.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) Sand fire updates: More than 37,000 acres burned in Santa Clarita Valley mountains »
Although the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department allowed most residents to return home Monday evening, hundreds of residents in three areas were still under evacuation orders.
L.A. County declared a local emergency Monday as the wildfire continued to grow.
The massive blaze erupted Friday along the northbound 14 Freeway at Sand Canyon Road. At least 18 structures have been destroyed and one damaged in the Angeles National Forest near Bear Divide and Sand Canyon areas, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
The fire has been blamed for one fatality.
Robert Bresnick, 67, was discovered dead about 7:20 p.m. Saturday inside a burned car in a driveway outside a home in the 26700 block of Iron Canyon Road.
Bresnick was visiting a friend when evacuation orders went out to residents, said Ed Winter, spokesman for the Los Angeles County coroner’s office. But Bresnick was apparently “uncooperative” and did not want to leave, he said.
As flames approached, his friend began evacuating, but Bresnick went back inside the home.
“They were trying to get him to leave,” Winter said.
He later emerged from the home, but it was too late.
Bresnick’s friend ran for the hills, while Bresnick got into his car just as flames swept over the area.
Twenty minutes later, firefighters found his burned body inside the car, Winter said.
Neighbors on Tuesday said he was trying to rescue his dogs and got caught in the fire. Residents said his girlfriend fled with her pet before the flames ran through the home.
Morgan Franklin, who lives across the street from the home, said the couple had three dogs.
“Her house is gone, her boyfriend is gone,” Franklin said. “It’s crazy.”
Investigators used dental records to identify Bresnick, officials said. An autopsy will be performed to determine an official cause of death.
Powerful winds have fueled flames, which were intensified by excessive heat and low humidity. The blaze scorched thousands of acres of forestland that hadn’t burned in several decades.
Ash from the fire fell throughout Los Angeles County, and smoke created an apocalyptic haze, even triggering air-quality advisories as far away as Reno.
On Tuesday, the South Coast Air Quality Management District extended a smoke advisory for the Antelope Valley, Santa Clarita Valley and parts of the San Gabriel Mountains. Officials warned that the air could reach unhealthy levels because of the smoke.
The fire already left scorch marks that could be seen from space, according to NASA. Satellites traveling above the Earth recorded images showing slightly darkened canyons and hills in the Santa Clarita Valley.
The National Weather Service warned that 25 to 30 mph winds were expected through Thursday in the Santa Clarita Valley and area mountains. Strong winds were also forecast for the Antelope Valley.
“Elevated fire danger is expected to persist through late in the week and possibly through the weekend,” the weather service said. “The potential for rapid growth and extreme fire behavior will continue, for existing fires and for any new fire that occurs.”
The weather service urged “extreme caution,” especially in areas with heavy brush.
The strong winds fed uncertainty about the fire. Along Agua Dulce Canyon Road, residents were under an evacuation order, but some were hunkered down in their homes, keeping a watchful eye on the blaze.
Victoria Donohoe, 50, and her long-term boyfriend remained inside their home of more than two decades.
“We’ve been through this before,” Donohoe said.
Her water supply was getting low, and like other residents here, she was prohibited from reentering the neighborhood if she drove past the police checkpoint. If the flames encroached, she said she had already set aside personal documents, pictures and clothes.
“We can tell when it’s going to get close,” she said, “and we’re prepared to leave.”
Times staff writer Veronica Rocha contributed to this report.
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UPDATES:
8:05 p.m.: This article was updated with updated figures on the acres burned and details from some residents who had yet to evacuate their homes.
6:05 p.m.: This post was updated with the issuance of a state of emergency for Los Angeles and Monterey counties.
5:00 p.m.: This post was updated with details on air quality advisories and minor editing.
11:05 a.m.: This post was updated with comments from neighbors.
10:27 a.m.: This post was updated with details from the coroner’s office.
This article was originally published at 7:50 a.m.
