Los Angeles wildfire chars 24,000 acres, 3 Homes
(AP)
Updated: 2005-10-02 16:37

"There is very little — if any — active fire out there," said Kurt Schaefer, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Fire Department. "We are getting the upper hand."

Beyond skilled firefighting, there were two other factors.

The dry, desert winds that fanned the fire were pushed out Thursday by a stream of moist ocean air. And residents had planned ahead by cutting brush around their homes to create safety buffers.

"Brush clearance creates the defensible space that's needed, at least 100 feet surrounding the house," said Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Michael Brown, referring to a state law that requires homes in high fire risk areas to cut surrounding brush. "Areas that did burn were not cleared."

Moreover, firefighters have learned from the past, including the 2003 San Diego fires, when a bungled response was blamed for the loss of hundreds of homes.

This time, helicopters were used even at night to drop water. Firefighters from various agencies — the fire burned along the Los Angeles and Ventura county lines — coordinated on how best to deploy personnel and equipment.

"We've been able to put those things we've learned in the past in place and save many more structures," Brown said.

Meanwhile, firefighters battled another wildfire Saturday in Burbank that blackened about 1,140 acres. About 70 homes in the rugged area 10 miles north of downtown Los Angeles were evacuated as a precaution.

Hundreds of emergency personnel were fighting a third fire about 70 miles east of Los Angeles in and around the San Bernardino National Forest. The blaze had charred 1,000 acres, said Robin Prince, spokeswoman for the national forest.

About 1,200 people were evacuated from several small communities Friday. Some residents were being allowed to return late Saturday, but mandatory evacuations remained for a few areas.

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