Residents of 200 homes were ordered to evacuate Saturday as a wildfire burned out of control in hills and canyons in this city east of Los Angeles, authorities said.
The fire burned about 1,400 acres, or 2.1 square miles, and had burned a shed and the roof of a house in the area where residents were being evacuated, said San Bernardino County Fire spokeswoman Angie Samayoa.
The cause was under investigation, and about 400 firefighters were fighting the blaze. Hesperia is about 80 miles northeast of Los Angeles.
“It’s increased substantially,” Samayoa said. “Firefighters are doing their very best to protect these homes.”
On Friday, flames allegedly ignited by two teens sent smoke seeping into the Warner Bros. studios and towering high in the sky behind the famous Hollywood sign before losing intensity.
The 150-acre blaze started near a corporate housing complex east of Universal City, south of the Warner Bros. studios complex in Burbank. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said two teens from Illinois were in custody and told authorities they caused the fire.
