Los Angeles authorities issued new evacuation orders Sunday afternoon as unpredictable winds push the massive wildfire out of the woods and forest lands toward homes in the Antelope Valley.
The tinder-dry canyons and winds have hampered firefighters trying to gain control of the blaze that started on Friday around 2:00 p.m. local time. The fire had grown to 11,000 acres by Saturday afternoon, and by Sunday, it had grown to 22,000 acres, doubling in size.
ABC News is reporting over 1,600 firefighters are battling the 34 square mile fire near the city of Santa Clarita, while up the coast about 300 miles, fire crews are battling another fire spanning more than 16 square miles outside the scenic Big Sur region.
Lt. Rob Hahnlein with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department told NBC News that an investigation into the death of a burned body found Saturday evening outside a home on Iron Canyon Road in Santa Clarita, just north of Los Angeles is still going on. Authorities want to know if the death was caused by the fire or by other means.
The smoke and flames from the Sand Fire can be seen for miles. Ash is covering cars as far away as Pasadena and beaches in Malibu, while the smoke is so thick it has prompted air quality warnings from health officials. Santa Clarita is about 35 miles north of downtown Los Angeles.
“The fire weather and the typical temperatures this year this summer are projected to be higher than normal so it’s important that all of our citizens recognize that,” Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Daryl Osby said. The whole area is under a “Red Flag” warning through Sunday night. There are nine wildfires burning in the state as of Sunday, says CalFire.
