It is one of at least 27 wildfires currently burning in the state, where 26 people have died and 6,100 structures have been destroyed since fire activity picked up in August, the California Department of Fire Protection (Cal Fire) said in a news release on Sunday. Nearly 19,000 firefighters are battling the blazes.
Cal Fire urged residents to stay vigilant as “the most devastating wildfires” typically happen in September and October.
It is now one of the largest wildfires in Los Angeles County history. The largest, the Station Fire, torched 160,000 acres in 2009.
The cause of the Bobcat Fire, which started on September 6, is still unknown. More than 1,700 fire personnel are battling the blaze.
One of the flare ups was at Chantry Flat, above the foothills east of Los Angeles Sunday.
A photo accompanying the tweet showed the light green Forest Service crew van, or buggy as firefighters call it, transporting firefighters from the Mormon Lake Hot Shots from Northern Arizona toward that area.
Los Angeles County Fire spokesman Sky Cornell told CNN Sunday that there was a big push Saturday to put in containment lines around the fire.
“They (fire crews) knew if they could push hard through the night it would make a big difference on the fire. They were successful in an aggressive fire attack through the night putting in containment lines in multiple areas,” Cornell said.
Cornell said much of the northern spread of the Bobcat Fire was into high desert flatlands, much easier terrain to battle wildfire than the steep hills and deep canyons of much of the Angeles National Forest, where the blaze has already burned.
“But we’re never out of the woods. We never let our guard down. We’re seeing some wind pick up today and that’s our number one concern,” he said.
Nature center closed after area burned
One hotspot that flared up was near the Devil’s Punchbowl Nature Center, which closed until further notice due to the blaze.
The natural area and facility of the Devil’s Punchbowl has been burned by the Bobcat Fire, a news release from the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation said Sunday.
“The area is still considered a hotspot and not safe,” the release said. “The facility will be closed until further notice.”
Animals from the sanctuary were evacuated earlier this week, according to the release.
CNN’s Gregory Lemos contributed to this report.
