Crews Make Gains on Calif. Fires

LAKE ARROWHEAD, Calif. — Firefighters Sunday hoped to hold on to the strong gains they made against Southern California blazes, despite a forecast of warmer, drier weather and a continuing threat to some homes.

The blistering Santa Ana winds that whipped fires over more than a half-million acres earlier in the week were replaced by light breezes and even some rain on Saturday but another change in direction was expected to bring drier weather to Orange and San Diego counties.

"We're still cautiously optimistic" of making progress, said Chris Caswell with the Orange County Fire Authority.

The fires have torched 1,790 homes but more than a dozen had been surrounded and nine others were 40 to 97 percent contained.

Blazes continued to burn in the Lake Arrowhead resort region of the towering San Bernardino Mountains, 100 miles east of Los Angeles. They also burned in rugged wilderness above isolated canyon communities of Orange County, southeast of Los Angeles. A blaze 60 miles northeast of San Diego stopped its advance toward the mountain town of Julian.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Saturday visited a command post near Orange County's Santiago Canyon fire to announce assistance for people with losses, warn of contracting scams, and pledge to find whoever set the nearby blaze that continued to threaten homes after destroying 14.