The Associated Press
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| An Orange County firefighter maneuvers to get away from a backfire that was set to rob a wildfire of fuel Monday in Anaheim, Calif. A wildfire fanned by Santa Ana winds ate through 1,200 acres of wilderness, forcing evacuation of 1,500 homes. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) |
ANAHEIM, Calif. — A wildfire driven by the seasonal Santa Ana wind quickly spread across 800 acres Monday and authorities urged residents to evacuate several hundred homes.
The fire was in a rugged section of the Cleveland National Forest near Orange County communities and a state highway.
“There have been some spot fires that have gotten past that point, but we have a lot of units trying to hold it at that point,” Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Stephen Miller said.
The voluntary evacuation areas included 200 to 300 homes in the Santiago Canyon area of the city of Orange and a section of Anaheim, said fire authority spokesman Dennis Shell.
The dry Santa Ana wind was blowing at 35 mph and smoke could be seen from downtown Los Angeles, 50 miles away. The cause of the fire had not been determined, said forest spokeswoman Joan Wynn.
Cleveland National Forest sprawls over 460,000 acres in segments of wilderness from Orange County south through Riverside and San Diego counties.