Firefighters said they have never seen anything like this wildfire
Firefighters tried to utilize all the means in order to put off the wildfire that burned a big part of California and continue to move to other parts of the state.
Aside from firefighters on the ground, choppers were also used to drop water into the site of the wildfire.
San Bernardino County fire officials said Thursday night that the fire is 22 percent contained, up from 4 percent at the beginning of the day.
County fire spokesman Eric Sherwin says the new figure represents a big step forward in the firefight. The containment lines were established on the east side of the fire in an area where evacuees were already allowed to return in the afternoon, so it’s unlikely to lead to more canceled evacuations.
Many homes have burned, but Sherwin says there are still no specific figures on how many.
“The biggest thing was, we had to continually retreat against that advancing wall of fire, and that was something that I haven’t witnessed in this section, ever,” said Sherwin said earlier.
“We have strike teams here, and remember, our priorities are life, properties, and infrastructure. And lives also include firefighters’ lives. And we can’t go and stand in front of that 80-foot wall of fire. That’s just self-defeating.”
Air tankers bombarded rugged slopes with fire retardant Thursday and a squadron of helicopters dropped load after load of water to corral a destructive wildfire threatening mountain, 60 miles east of Los Angeles.
On the ground, firefighters and bulldozers worked to protect the ski town of Wrightwood and other areas high in the San Gabriel Mountains.
For almost a week already, firefighters said they have never seen anything like this wildfire, growing so fast with such ferocity since it started late Tuesday morning.
Authorities estimated that only half the 4,500 residents of Wrightwood heeded evacuation orders.
More than 1,500 personnel are at the scene today.
The fire has blackened more than 49 square miles.
