California wildfire grows overnight

A wildfire that authorities believe was sparked by remnants of a controlled burn grew in size overnight but crews made significant progress in containing it, officials said today.

The blaze just east of the cities of Orange and Anaheim had burned 7,179 acres and was 18% contained, said Dennis Shell, a spokesman for the Orange County Fire Authority.

However, temperatures were rising, humidity was falling and Santa Ana winds were whipping up, he said.

“Today’s going to be a very critical day for us,” Shell said.

Remnants of a controlled burn fanned to life by Santa Ana winds are believed to have caused the blaze, which triggered the evacuation of more than 2,000 homes, a US Forest Service official said.

“I am very regretful of the situation I find myself in,” Chief Rich Hawkins of the Cleveland National Forest said. “The fact that nobody’s home has burned down and no one’s been killed, that’s a godsend.”

The controlled burn was ignited on 10 acres near Sierra Peak on February 2, and at the time no Santa Ana winds were predicted for at least five days, Hawkins said.

“Normally fire will burn for two weeks after you think they’re out. … But that’s no excuse, we had several days to mop that up with our fire engines,” he said.

Hawkins noted that the apparent cause would not be considered final for two weeks because several people in a pickup truck had been seen in the area where the wildfire roared to life early on Monday. But he said controlled burn and the location where the wildfire began were almost identical.