Firefighters Hurt as Bus Overturns : Only Minor Injuries Result; Heat and Wind Plague Crews

Fourteen firefighters, 13 of them minimum-security work camp inmates, were injured when their bus overturned on the lines of a 7,000-acre wildfire in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Central California, authorities said Saturday.

The incident--causing only minor injuries--occurred as firefighters escalated their efforts to stop the week-old fire northeast of Fresno and to contain a larger 14,000-acre blaze in rugged portions of the Cleveland National Forest near Mt. Palomar. Nearly 4,000 firefighters were battling the two blazes, hampered by hot, dry weather, winds and rugged terrain.

In Los Angeles, high temperatures contributed to a small fire that burned about five acres of brush in the 2800 block of El Roble Drive in Eagle Rock. The fire was put out by Los Angeles firefighters without injuries or structural damage.

More Heat and Wind

Officials braced for more heat and wind today throughout the region, as state and federal crews struggled to extend fire lines across nearly impassable mountain hillsides and ravines.

The so-called Vail Fire in the Cleveland National Forest, set by gunfire from target practice a week ago near Vail Lake, had consumed 14,000 acres and burned stubbornly despite the efforts of more than 2,000 firefighters, including 150 reinforcements.

The fire, declared 58% contained Friday morning, burned an additional 3,000 acres during the day and was labeled only 40% contained Saturday. Temperatures hovering near 90 degrees, erratic winds and thick brush severely hampered firefighters, said spokesman Chris Cundari of the U. S. Forest Service.

“The brush is just so thick . . . it really makes it tough for the firefighters,” Cundari said. “Some of it had not burned in 100 years. It’s so thick you can’t even walk through it.”

Roads Closed

Forestry officials said the fire has not yet threatened homes or caused serious injuries. At one point, it closed to within three miles of the Palomar Observatory, but the wind shifted and pushed the blaze away from the structure, Cundari said. Two roads to the observatory remained closed, however, as well a stretch of California 79 between Temecula and Warner Springs.

If the fire causes no serious damage, it actually may benefit the region by clearing away dead undergrowth and permitting the growth of new vegetation, Cundari said. Such growth could be beneficial to wildlife.

In the Sierra foothills, meanwhile, authorities said they had reached 70% containment despite a series of difficulties in maintaining fire lines and getting firefighting planes close to the fire.

“This will be a critical shift, today and tonight,” Forest Service spokesperson Margie Clack said. “We’re trying to hold.”

A heavy inversion layer kept a lid of heat and smoke over that blaze, preventing air tankers from dropping fire retardant on many fire-ravaged mountain slopes, Clack said. Two days earlier, fire officials had predicted the fire would be fully contained by Saturday, but heat and winds caused the flames to jump one containment line and burn an additional 200 acres, she said.

Fire officials still do not know when the fire might be fully contained.

“It’s looking more favorable,” Clack said. “A lot is going to depend on the humidities tonight, the temperature and the upslope wind.”