Northbound I-5 Is Shut as Fire Near Castaic Still Rages

The arson fire near Castaic that began Monday closed the northbound lanes of the Golden State Freeway on Wednesday for the second time this week and has surpassed in size the devastating 1993 Calabasas/Malibu blaze.

The fire, which consumed more than 2,000 acres Wednesday alone, edged into an area of the Angeles National Forest that has not burned in almost 30 years.

“[The fire] is becoming a lot bigger with no signs of control,” said Inspector Henry Rodriguez of the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

On Wednesday, officials said the Marple Canyon fire was less than 20% contained, but because it was in a mostly remote area, only three structures had been damaged.

The small loss in structures can also be attributed to the massive force brought into the area in a short amount of time. In only three days, 2,187 firefighters and support personnel had been mustered.

Firefighters from throughout the Western United States endured temperatures nearing 100 degrees, vicious interference by stinging insects and damage to several emergency vehicles overrun by flames.

The fire was believed to have been deliberately set by a teenager, who was charged with arson Wednesday.

Because of the area’s steep terrain, fire officials were forced to resort mostly to hand crews and water-dropping aircraft. Some of the truck crews were released because the equipment could not traverse the area.

Enough trucks have been retained, however, to provide concentrated protection for threatened structures, such as those at the Paradise Ranch trailer park, where 100 residents were evacuated Tuesday night.

“We had some heavy fire there, but we didn’t lose anything,” Rodriguez said.

The Calabasas/Malibu fire, which broke out Nov. 2, 1993, burned 16,500 acres. The last fire to hit the Castaic Lake watershed charred 55,000 acres in 1968.

Shifting midafternoon winds Wednesday further hampered attempts to bring the blaze under control and forced the second shutdown of the Golden State Freeway’s northbound lanes since Monday.

North of Castaic, residents remaining at Paradise Ranch were given on-again, off-again warnings about the encroaching flames. By late afternoon, the residents were put on renewed alert as firefighters readied for a possible second evacuation.

As it moved north and northeast, the fire also threatened major power lines, high-pressure gas and crude oil lines, and aqueduct pipes.

Spokesmen for Southland utilities said their high-pressure gas and crude oil lines in the fire area are largely underground and have not been damaged by the blaze.

Firefighters weary from days of hot, hard work made the best of their situation, Rodriguez said.

“If you can find a piece of grass to sleep on, that’s where you sleep. If you brought a tent, you’re doing better,” he said. “If you like sleeping on the back of a fire engine on top of a hose, well, that’s up to you.”

Authorities Wednesday filed arson charges against the San Fernando boy who allegedly admitted setting the blaze in the Marple Canyon area.

The boy, whose name was not released, is scheduled to be arraigned today in Sylmar Juvenile Court on two counts of arson that include allegations that the boy is responsible for arson to multiple structures, prosecutors said.

The teenager, who was arrested Monday shortly after the fire broke out, had been missing from home overnight in his father’s car.

He told authorities the vehicle broke down on the Golden State Freeway north of Castaic, and he was walking along the highway when he decided to set the fire with a lighter, said Sgt. Heidi Clark of the sheriff’s arson investigation unit.

Times staff writer Abigail Goldman and Times wire services contributed to this report.