Firefighters Hope to End Blaze Today : Disaster: Damage is estimated at $500 million. Authorities cite 25 intruders for sifting through ashes in search of valuables.

As firefighters armed with shovels and water hoses Sunday battled the last hot spots of the devastating wildfire that they expect to extinguish today, authorities announced they had cited about 25 people for rifling through the ashes of homes for valuables.

“People are sifting through the ruins of other people’s houses,” said California Highway Patrol Sgt. Dave Kissinger at a roadblock in one neighborhood that was heavily damaged by the fire. “It’s totally sick.”

Those cited were charged with “sightseeing at the scene of an emergency,” a misdemeanor, after they were caught combing through the rubble in burned-out neighborhoods, said Tim Gracey, spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department.

CHP officers maintained roadblocks at streets leading into some neighborhoods and allowed in only those who could prove they lived there.

Santa Barbara County Sheriff Jim Thomas said there were no documented cases of looting, a more serious charge. But one fire victim said it was clear that someone had searched through the ashes of his home, moved a filing cabinet and opened the drawers.

“There’s nothing anyone could find in there,” said John Warkentin, pointing to his demolished house, “but it’s irritating to think someone was trying.”

As firefighters worked to clear out the final hot spots of the wildfire, officials estimated the damage at about $500 million. Estimates have varied as official inspections were completed.

About 1,000 firefighters--down from a peak of 1,800--remained Sunday, and officials say they expect the number to drop to a crew of about 100 today.

“They’re checking tree stumps, roots and piles of leaves, making sure nothing is smoldering,” said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Maeton Freel. “We don’t want to run the risk of anything flaring up again.”

The ground crews were aided by helicopters equipped with infra-red video cameras, designed to find burning embers in the brush and in charred houses. Once the smoldering areas were found, ground crews and helicopters dumped water and fire retardant on the embers.

In other areas of the city, residents whose homes escaped the flames that scorched thousands of acres worked together to trim back trees and clear shrubs to be better prepared for the next wave of fire. Fire officials said Santa Barbara is particularly vulnerable during the remainder of the summer because the region has been plagued by a severe drought.

“The scary part is, this is just the beginning,” said Charles Johnson, a spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department. “We still have the whole summer to go.”

In one neighborhood hard hit by the fire, U.S. Sen. Pete Wilson and county officials staged a press conference Sunday afternoon after touring the stricken region by helicopter and on foot.

“It is almost an unprecedented disaster in terms of the speed and the magnitude of the fire,” said Wilson, the Republican nominee for governor. “It traveled 3.8 miles in an hour and 20 minutes.”

Wilson said Santa Barbara residents will be able to apply for federal disaster relief on Tuesday, when the Federal Emergency Management Agency opens a temporary headquarters in the area.

An inter-agency task force headed by officials from city and county fire departments and the U.S. Forest Service has been formed to investigate the fire, caused when an arsonist used an incendiary device on the bone-dry brush. A $120,000 reward, raised from donations by local residents and businesses, has been offered for information leading to the arrest of the arsonist.

On San Marcos Pass Road, where traffic was permitted for the first time since the fire began Wednesday, scores of sightseers on Sunday parked by the side of the road to gaze at the huge expanse of charred brush and firefighters at work.

“I think the whole thing is incredible--that an arsonist could do so much damage,” said Irv Bromberg, a tourist from Coral Springs, Fla.

Bromberg and his wife, Wendy, standing near where the fire was set, watched as helicopters carrying huge buckets of fire retardant flew over and dumped their loads on smoking embers on a nearby hillside.

On Saturday night, the fire was contained, which means a fire line around the blaze was completed. The fire was expected to be under control by this morning. That means there are no flames within 300 feet of the fire lines. And, because of the coastal fog, cool temperatures and absence of winds, the fire is expected to be extinguished later today, officials said.

But in the aftermath of this fire, residents will eventually be confronted by a new danger--mudslides. During the next week, a U.S. Forest Service team of geologists, soil scientists and other experts, along with officials from the county Flood Control Agency, will map the burn area, looking for potential mudslide sites. Before winter, the Forest Service will build small dams at the base of some denuded hills and block off some fire-ravaged ravines to prevent flooding during the next heavy rains.

“The area that was burned was steep, close to populated areas and there were about three creeks that drain right through the cities. This makes it a prime area for mudslides,” Freel said. “That’s our next concern.”

In San Diego County, gusting winds on Sunday prolonged the life of another arson fire burning for the last five days near Lake Henshaw. The fire had been listed as contained Sunday morning until winds increased, preventing full containment for another 24 hours. The final damage toll is expected to be 4,350 acres and $291,000. The fire destroyed two homes. Ten firefighters suffered minor injuries. Halting the flames’ advance required more than 1,800 firefighters.

During last week’s savage heat wave, brush fires--most of them arson--scorched thousands of acres in areas of Southern California, including Glendale, Chino Hills, Corona and Hemet.

Times staff writer Howard Blume contributed to this story from Los Angeles.

THE FIRES’ TOLL Devastating wildfires--most set by arsonists--swept Southern California last week. Here is a summary of six major blazes and the toll they took:

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY

Damage: $500 million estimated, including homes, farms, bridges and government property.

Acres burned: 4,900

Structures destroyed:

Single-family homes: 430, $214 million.

Apartments: 28 buildings, $17 million.

Mobile homes: 1, $50,000.

Commercial buildings: 15, $3 million.

Injuries: 1 death, Andrea Gurka, 37, of Santa Barbara; more than 40 injured, including a helicopter pilot.

Cause: Arson.

GLENDALE Los Angeles County

Damage: $50 million.

Acres burned: 350.

Homes destroyed: 46 destroyed, 20 damaged.

Injuries: Eight minor ones.

Cause: Arson suspected, two people being sought.

CHINO HILLS

Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties

Damage: Preliminary estimate of $1 million to $2 million.

Acres burned: 6,640.

Homes destroyed: 12 estimated.

Injuries: Minor ones to eight firefighters.

Cause: Arson suspected; one man arrested.

CORONA

Bedford Canyon, Riverside County

Damage: $1.95 million.

Acres burned: 4,500.

Homes destroyed: 7 homes, 2 trailers.

Injuries: 12 firefighters with minor injuries.

Cause: A controlled burn that jumped fire lines of the California Department of Forestry.

HEMET Riverside County

Damage: No damage to property reported.

Acres burned: 125

Homes destroyed: none.

Injuries: 1 death, Victor Ferrera, an inmate firefighter from the Bautista Conservation Camp near Hemet; 1 inmate firefighter critically injured, 4 others remain hospitalized in moderate to serious condition. 18 injuries total.

Cause: Under investigation.

LAKE HENSHAW San Diego County

Damage: $291,000.

Acres burned: 4,350.

Homes destroyed: 2.

Injuries: 10 firefighters suffered minor injuries.

Cause: Arson.