Thousands flee as wildfire destroys homes

A wildfire tore through Los Angeles’ northern foothills early today sending thousands of residents fleeing in the dark, forcing a hospital to evacuate and destroying an untold number of homes.

The fire broke out late last night in the foothill community of Sylmar on the edge of the Angeles National Forest and quickly spread across 2,600 acres in a few hours as it was driven by a Santa Ana wind that gusted as high as 76mph.

At least 10 homes were burned, officials said, but aerial footage from television helicopters showed many mobile homes in flames.

Part of the area’s network of highways was shut down.

Officials ordered huge evacuations in the Sylmar and Porter Ranch communities as the fire scorched across two highways.

To the west, firefighters were still battling a separate wildfire that destroyed more than 110 homes in Santa Barbara.

The Los Angeles blaze threatened at least 1,000 buildings, fire spokeswoman Melissa Kelley said.

Flames surrounded Olive View-UCLA Medical Centre knocking out electricity, forcing officials to evacuate a number of patients in critical care. The hospital’s power and backup generators also failed, and emergency room staff had to keep critical patients alive with hand powered ventilators. A few babies were rushed out in ambulances to another hospital.

“We have no power, and our generators are not working,” hospital spokeswoman Carla Nino told the Los Angeles Times. “With no power, we have no fans. ... We are not circulating any air.”

Sixteen patients in the neonatal and intensive care units were evacuated, but the hospital was not in danger, said Michael Wilson, a spokesman with the county Department of Health Services.

Wilson said there was some fire damage to the facility that hospital administrators were evaluating.

More than 600 firefighters were struggling to protect homes threatened by flying embers. Because of the rough terrain in the forest, they were relying on water-dropping helicopters to tackle flames marching uphill toward the San Gabriel Mountains. Authorities said some aircraft were grounded during the night by the savage wind, but they expect six airplanes and a dozen helicopters to attack the fire at daybreak.

Wind gusted up to 60mph in the Sylmar area and was not expected to let up until mid-morning, National Weather Service meteorologist Jamie Meier said.

The shifting wind pushed the fire uphill toward the San Gabriel Mountains and downhill toward homes, sometimes skipping across canyons. It also jumped Interstate 5 and the 210 Freeway, forcing the California Highway Patrol to shut down sections of both freeways and some connecting roads.

The cause of the fire was under investigation. One resident suffered serious burns, Kelley said.

The blaze also blackened habitat for the endangered California condor and several hiking trails, US Forest Service spokesman Stanton Florea said.

About 80 miles to the west, an uncontained blaze in the Santa Barbara community of Montecito had forced the evacuation of more than 5,400 homes since it started on Thursday night, exploding through dry brush and vast stands of oil-rich eucalyptus trees. About 800 firefighters were battling the fire at the wealthy, celebrity-studded enclave, and they were expected to make significant progress through today, said Santa Barbara city fire spokesman John Ahlman.

“There’s plenty of hot material still left out there,” he said. “But things could change in a hurry if the winds pick up.”

Several multimillion-dollar homes and a small college suffered major damage in Montecito, a quaint and secluded area that has attracted celebrities such as Rob Lowe, Jeff Bridges, Michael Douglas and Oprah Winfrey.

Lowe said he fled with his children as fire engulfed the mountain. The family found neighbours trapped behind their automatic car gate, which was stuck because the power was out. Lowe said he helped open the big gates.

“Embers were falling. Wind was 70 miles (113 kilometres) an hour, easily, and it was just like Armageddon,” Lowe told KABC-TV.

“You couldn’t hear yourself think.” Lowe said his house hadn’t burned.

The fire quickly consumed rows of luxury homes and parts of Westmont College, a Christian liberal arts school, where students spent the night in a gymnasium shelter.

“That whole mountain over there went up at once. Boom,” said Bob McNall, 70, who with his son and grandson saved their home by hosing it down. “The whole sky was full of embers. There was nothing that they could do. It was just too much.”

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Santa Barbara Mayor Marty Blum said up to 200 homes may have been destroyed or damaged in his city.

At least 13 people were injured in Montecito. A 98-year-old man with multiple medical problems died after being evacuated, but it was unclear if his death was directly related to the blaze, Santa Barbara County Sheriff-Coroner Bill Brown said.

At least part of actor Christopher Lloyd’s property was damaged in the fire, the Los Angeles Times reported on its real estate blog. It said a Times reporter witnessed much of the “Back to the Future” actor’s eight-acre grounds in ruins, and that he was filming on location in Vancouver but a caretaker had fled the property.

Montecito, known for its balmy climate and charming Spanish colonial homes, has long attracted celebrities. The landmark Montecito Inn was built in the 1920s by Charlie Chaplin, and the nearby San Ysidro Ranch was the honeymoon site of John F. Kennedy in 1953.