Crews stop forward progress on Santa Clarita fire that prompted evacuation warning, threatened homes

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (KABC) -- A brush fire that erupted in the Santa Clarita area on Wednesday afternoon threatened homes and prompted evacuation warnings, but crews quickly got the upper hand on the flames despite the extreme heat and difficult conditions.

The Pointe Fire burned dangerously close to homes in the area of 21300 Centre Pointe Parkway. Los Angeles County firefighters first responded to the brush fire at 1:40 p.m., and a second alarm was requested at 2:08 p.m. The flames spread quickly through a canyon and towards homes and a school.

Surveillance cameras from behind one home captured the Pointe Fire turn from a cloud of smoke to a full-blown brush fire in less than a minute. The fire came within feet of some homes.

Cloaked in heavy gear in triple-digit temperatures, firefighters working a break line and single-man crews soaking the burnt hillside stopped the Pointe Fire from advancing, sparing the homes and lives of dozens of veterans and their families.

In an update at 4 p.m., the fire department said forward progress had been stopped on the fire at 52 acres, and crews had reached 32% containment. No structures were damaged, and no injuries were reported.

Still, an evacuation warning is in place for residents in zone SCL-CARLBOYER as crews battle hot spots in the extreme heat.

According to nearby residents, a neighborhood just about 50 yards from the fire is an entire community of military veterans. Neighbors near Soledad Canyon Road say that although there have been fires in the area before, they have never seen a blaze this close to homes.

"I mean, it's not the first time it's happened, but it's definitely the worst," resident Chris Landgren said. "I saw the whole living room turned a different color. A neighbor called and said, 'How close is the fire?' And I walked out, and that whole thing was just an inferno. So I grabbed my dogs, and my mother was staying over, so we grabbed her, and as quick as we could, we got out. And then I just walked back to grab her medicine and the medicine for my dogs."

Jonathan Torres with the Los Angeles County Fire Department told Eyewitness News that just under 200 personnel were on the ground, helping to battle the blaze. Crews also had two firehawks and two helitankers in the sky, making water drops.

A bulldozer was also on the scene, putting up a perimeter on the ground.

"It's July. Vegetation's dry. It's hot today. It's approaching near triple-digits up here. Fortunately, in this part of town, we have not had strong winds," said Aaron Katon with L.A. County Fire. "You go up by the I-5 corridor, you're going to see gusts up to 30 mph tonight, out into Ventura County and Santa Barbara, the same. But fortunately, because we didn't have such high winds, that we were able to get such a good jump on this thing."

As fire choppers doused flames from the air, people in the military neighborhood rushed to save neighbors' pets and grabbed hoses to protect their turf. A nearby preschool sent small children to safety across town at a reunification point set up by local officials.

Firefighters were assisted by strategically placed fire breaks in the area, which are dirt roads that provide a barrier between areas of brush.

"We're going to be on scene for hours still to come. Going through, mopping it up, making sure that there is not a single ember that poses a threat," Katon said.

A reuinfication point was established at the Santa Clarita Aquatic Center, located at 20850 Centre Point Parkway, according to the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff's Station. Metrolink trains were temporarily shut down between Via Princessa and Newhall.

AIR7 video from shortly before 3 p.m. showed smoke billowing over Soledad Canyon Road. Residents in the nearby neighborhood were seen exiting their homes and loading up their cars.

Video also showed a bee colony right outside the perimeter of the fire. Torres said officials were aware of the colony and were working to protect it. A bulldozer was seen actively pushing the fire away from the colony as water drops were made overhead.

The fire comes on the hottest day of Southern California's summer heat wave. Much of the region is under an Extreme Heat Warning.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.