Wrightwood shocked by destruction caused by bridge fire

Visibility was minimal in this rustic town in the San Gabriel Mountains Wednesday as flames from the explosive bridge fire engulfed several homes and outbuildings.

Although most people were dead, the remnants of their lives – a satellite dish, garden furniture, a picturesque greenhouse and potted plants – were covered in a thick layer of ash.

According to Mike Inman, deputy chief of the Los Angeles County Fire Department, some residents were initially hesitant to leave the building, but they quickly got the message.

“They never believed it would happen, but then they believed it when they saw it coming to town,” Inman said Wednesday morning from Wrightwood Elementary School.

The Bridge Fire is one of three fast-spreading wildfires that have erupted in recent days during a record-breaking heat wave in Southern California, forcing residents of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties to scramble for their lives. At least 13 homes in Wrightwood and surrounding cabins have been burned.

Many evacuees sought shelter at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds in Victorville.

One of them, a Pinon Hills resident named Joel who declined to give his last name, said the bridge fire was the first time in more than 20 years he felt the need to leave.

“The fire just spread too quickly yesterday,” said Joel as he sat next to a trailer carrying three horses.

His neighbor, who identified herself as Alice, said she had less than an hour to gather her pets and belongings. Although she is concerned about her home, her thoughts are also with the emergency responders protecting the area, she said.

“Just pray for the firefighters,” she said.

The fires spread quickly and fiercely as triple-digit temperatures burned overgrown vegetation that had sprouted after two consecutive wet winters. Experts say the region's grasses and hills are vulnerable to fast-spreading flames, and emergency crews are struggling to contain the blazes, which include the 22,000-acre Airport Fire and the 35,000-acre Line Fire.

But the 48,000-acre Bridge Fire is still not under control and has become the largest and most important fire in the state, according to authorities. About 2,500 structures are threatened by the fire, and at least 20 homes have been destroyed in Mt. Baldy, 13 homes in Wrightwood and six cabins in the Angeles National Forest Wilderness Area.

On the north side of Highway 2, a fire swept into the thick vegetation surrounding a two-story home with a brick chimney on Wednesday. Crews extinguished the flames with their hoses but allowed some of the fire to burn downhill and through the vegetation to create a defensive space around the home.

“This is just part of the larger Bridge Fire that we are monitoring,” said Eric Sherwin, spokesman for the San Bernardino County Fire Department, from a nearby church parking lot, where the smell of burnt wood hung in the air.

Strong westerly winds with gusts of up to 80 km/h “drove the fire into Wrightwood” as it crossed Highway 2 on Tuesday evening, Sherwin said.

The San Bernardino County fire captain looks over the charred landscape destroyed by the Wrightwood bridge fire.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Although the flames reached the area's famous Mountain High Ski Resort, officials said it escaped largely unscathed. Less certain is the fate of the nearby property of Bungee America, a bungee jumping company that operates from the “Bridge to Nowhere” – a 1930s-era arched bridge that spans the San Gabriel River and was originally intended to connect to Wrightwood.

Ron Jones, founder of Bungee America, told the LA County Regional Planning Commission on Wednesday that the fire most likely destroyed his property, which includes a helicopter hangar, a restroom and storage containers. Fortunately, he said, the bridge itself is a reinforced concrete structure that has “stood the test of time over the last 88 years,” and it's likely it will continue to stand.

The Line Fire has exhibited similarly dangerous behavior and continues to threaten the areas around Running Springs, Arrowbear Lake and nearby Big Bear.

Big Bear resident Darleen Sandoval said she and her husband decided to vacate their home of 13 years because they had 12 children living there and no longer felt safe.

Although their house is still standing, it was a very emotional experience, Sandoval said. The parents plan to use the fire as a vacation for the children – perhaps camping or another fun way to pass the time.

Still, she said she couldn't escape the stress of being trapped between two places.

“I think I’m just a little numb to it,” Sandoval said.

Others are equally uncertain about the future.

Although Wrightwood has been hit by wildfires in the past, the situation was particularly dangerous this time as emergency crews drove through the area and ordered people to leave, said Michelle Speers, a longtime resident.

She grabbed a few documents, clothes, and a handful of other items and helped her daughter, grandchildren, and neighbors load their cars. Then she sped off down the highway, away from her beloved community.

“We've heard from other residents who stayed up there,” Speers said. “But we don't know when we'll be able to return home.”