Two Los Angeles County firefighters were killed when their vehicle rolled down a mountainside amid the intense flames of a wildfire that threatened 12,000 homes.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger urged those in the fire’s path to get out as the blazes rained ash on cars as far away as downtown Los Angeles, spreading in all directions in dry conditions.
Firefighters fixed their attention on Sunday on the blaze’s fast-moving eastern side where flames lapped at the foot of the vital communications and astronomy center of Mount Wilson, and on the northwestern front, where the two firefighters were killed on Mount Gleason near the city of Acton.
“We ask for your understanding, for your patience as we move through this difficult time, and please, prayers for the families of our two brothers that we lost,” county Deputy Fire Chief Mike Bryant said through tears at a Sunday night news conference.
Fire Captain Tedmund Hall, 47, and firefighter Specialist Arnaldo “Arnie” Quinones, 35, were killed in the crash, said Los Angeles County Fire Captain Mike Savage. Authorities did not give a cause for the crash, and officials would take no questions on the deaths.
Television helicopter video on Sunday night showed an upside-down vehicle on the mountain side.
“Our hearts are heavy as we are tragically reminded of the sacrifices our firefighters and their families make daily to keep us safe,” Schwarzenegger said in a statement.
The blaze was only about 5 percent contained and had scorched 184km² in the Angeles National Forest.
Mandatory evacuations were in effect for neighborhoods in Glendale, Pasadena and other cities and towns north of Los Angeles. Officials said air quality in parts of the foothills bordered on hazardous.
The fire, which broke out on Wednesday afternoon, was the largest of many burning around California, including a new blaze in Placer County northeast of Sacramento that destroyed 60 structures, many of them homes.
The Southern California fire was expected to reach the top of Mount Wilson during Sunday night, where 22 television stations, many radio stations and cell phone providers have their transmitters, said US Forest Service Captain Mike Dietrich.
Firefighters were pulled from the top of the mountain after clearing brush and spraying retardant on antennas because it was too dangerous for them to remain.
“We’ve done all the preparation we can,” county fire spokesman Mark Savage said.
Television stations said if the antennas burn broadcast signals will be affected but satellite and cable transmissions will not be.
Two giant telescopes and several multimillion-dollar university programs are housed in the century-old Mount Wilson Observatory. The complex of buildings is both a historic landmark and a thriving modern center for astronomy.
At least 18 homes were destroyed in the fire and firefighters expected to find many more, authorities said.
While thousands have fled, two people who tried to ride out the firestorm in a backyard hot tub were burned. The pair in Big Tujunga Canyon, on the southwestern edge of the fire, “completely underestimated the fire” and the hot tub provided “no protection whatsoever,” Sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore said on Sunday.
The pair made their way to firefighters and were airlifted out by a sheriff’s rescue helicopter. They received adequate notification to evacuate from deputies but decided to stay, Whitmore said.
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