Southern California Wildfire

Firefighters battle the wind driven Etiwanda fire burning very close to homes on April 30. 2014 

A Southern California wildfire that forced the evacuation of 1,600 foothill homes was 53 percent contained Thursday evening, according to officials. The fire held steady after burning through at least 1,627 acres of brush. No homes have burned in the area east of Los Angeles, and there are no mandatory evacuations.
Winds in the area below the San Bernardino National Forest were around 15 mph Thursday night, with 25-mph gusts — a far cry from the 70-mph gusts a day earlier. The Etiwanda fire had started in the San Bernardino Mountains near Rancho Cucamonga Wednesday morning, and Santa Ana winds fed the fire and pushed smoke into nearby neighborhoods. About 1,600 homes were evacuated Wednesday, but families were allowed to return home for the night. Officials did urge people in some northern neighborhoods of Rancho Cucamonga to leave voluntarily if they felt threatened, said Chon Bribiescas, a spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service.

Full text: http://www.weather.com/news/etiwanda-fire-southern-california-20140430