Arson Fires Char More Than 2,200 Acres : Disaster: No houses had been damaged in the three blazes as of late Tuesday. Firefighters were still battling two of them.

Started by arsonists and propelled by 40-m.p.h. winds, brush fires raged north and south of Santa Paula and southeast of Fillmore on Tuesday, charring more than 2,200 acres and threatening residences.

The three blazes caused only two minor injuries to firefighters and no structural damage, officials said Tuesday evening. But they were concerned about the newest of the fires, which broke out about 5 p.m. near Shiells Canyon southeast of Fillmore and quickly charred 500 acres as it raced westward. A dense brown cloud of smoke rose several hundred feet and then curved into a five-mile-long ribbon curling toward Santa Paula.

The Shiells blaze threatened several homes, but officials hoped that weed-clearing by residents would prevent any damage.

“Good brush-clearing behind these homes will save them,” Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Gary Aalberts said as he watched 25-foot-high flames pass by a well-cleared yard on Guiberson Road.

About 750 firefighters were battling the blazes, including units from the Los Angeles city and county fire departments, the Santa Paula and Fillmore departments, the Santa Barbara County department and the California Department of Forestry. About 500 more firefighters were expected to join the effort by this morning.

By Tuesday evening, firefighters had all but contained one of the fires, which charred about 800 acres on South Mountain south of Santa Paula. But the Shiells blaze and the so-called Mupu fire north of Santa Paula still had not been brought under control.

Officials expected that Tuesday night would be a critical period for the Mupu fire, which had scorched 900 acres by nightfall. Bulldozers were clearing a firebreak that firefighters said was crucial to keep the blaze from reaching Sulphur Mountain to the north. Sulphur Mountain is the site of several expensive houses, including a 10,000-square-foot house that actor Larry Hagman is having built.

“If everything works right, we can pinch off the head of this fire tonight,” Ventura County Fire Capt. Robert Roper said.

As darkness set in, Battalion Chief Dale Miller of the Ventura County department said that the winds were diminishing and that he was confident that the firebreak would be completed in time. Firefighters who were relieved were being sent to Steckel Park north of Santa Paula to get some sleep.

Forecasters expected the weather to cooperate with firefighters, who had to battle gusting, often shifting winds and temperatures in the mid-90s Tuesday.

“The winds won’t be a problem tomorrow,” Marty McKewon, a forecaster for WeatherData Inc., said Tuesday night. “They’re dying even as we speak. After midnight, things will quiet down quite a bit.”

He said high temperatures today will be 15 degrees cooler on the average and humidity will increase.

Investigators said they had evidence that the South Mountain and Mupu blazes were arson. “We know they were set fires,” said Ventura County Fire Chief Dick Perry, declining to elaborate. Another investigator said the Shiells blaze also was “definitely arson.”

The Shiells blaze came close to the home of James Shiells, for whose family the nearby canyon is named. “We’re always glad to see it burn,” Shiells said, looking at the brush in flames behind his house. “Every time you survive something like this, you feel pretty safe for a while.”

Although Santa Paula was surrounded by billowing clouds of smoke all day Tuesday, it was spared by the blazes that flanked it on the north and south. The Mupu fire was downwind and heading away from Santa Paula, while the Santa Clara River kept the South Mountain fire from reaching the city.

On the north and south sides of town, residents sat in lawn chairs in their front yards, watching as smoke and occasional bursts of flame erupted from nearby canyons.

Ventura County Supervisor Maggie Erickson and Chief Administrative Officer Richard Wittenberg toured the area with County Fire Chief George Lund.

“We’ve seen a lot worse up here,” Erickson said, alluding to previous fires. “The fire departments have done a great job.”

The series of blazes began with the South Mountain fire, which was reported at 10:55 p.m. Monday and lit up the hills south of the city.

“Before they got there, they could see from the large glow forming in the sky that it was a major fire,” said Keith Gurrola, safety officer for the Ventura County Fire Department.

When the first five trucks arrived, five acres were burning but the fire was spreading rapidly. Ten more trucks were summoned, and firefighters struggled to save 15 houses at the foot of South Mountain as grateful residents watched.

“We just love’em--always loved’em,” said Louise Taylor as firefighters fought flames only 50 yards from her house. “It was real scary to see the fire get so close.”

Mark Wintz, whose residence was saved by Fillmore firefighters, was also thankful. “People don’t really appreciate them until you see them up there saving your house.”

Meanwhile, the wind carried flaming debris that started a separate fire half a mile away.

“The fire just blew hot stuff ahead and it caught the overheated bushes,” said Peter Cronk, a county arson investigator.

The new blaze briefly threatened five houses on Lemon Grove Street but firefighters arrived in time to save them. By 1 a.m. Tuesday, the South Mountain fire and its offshoot had joined and scorched more than 300 acres.

About then, a phone call awakened Greg Martinez in his isolated house on South Mountain Road. “My girlfriend was calling. She could see the fire from Santa Paula and she wondered if I was OK. I looked out the window and all I could see was flames.”

Eventually, the flames completely surrounded the house but stopped about 50 feet away and did no damage. Martinez credited the weed-clearing he did in May with saving the house.

“The Fire Department comes around and they’re real strict about that,” he said. “I didn’t want to do it but hey, I’m glad I did.”

When the houses were out of danger, department leaders spent the night poring over topographical maps, plotting strategy for fighting the blaze once the sun rose. Gurrola said it was too dangerous to try to build fire lines in the dark because of the rough terrain, which included not only trees and scrub brush but also oil installations and power lines.

“The power lines are arcing,” Gurrola said. “If we’re not careful, we’ll get electrocuted.”

Many of the 200 or so rank-and-file firefighters, who had been on duty since 8 a.m. Monday, slept alongside their trucks while awaiting daybreak. Just before dawn, a catering truck arrived with eggs, sausage, bacon and orange juice. Soon afterward, reinforcements arrived from Los Angeles and other Ventura County stations.

About 8:15 a.m., as firefighters surrounded the South Mountain fire on three sides, the pilot of a helicopter ferrying water noticed a plume of smoke on the other side of Santa Paula. Because it was half a mile north of Mupu Elementary School, the new blaze was dubbed the Mupu fire.

“It doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere,” said Bill Wright, the county’s wildlife fire officer.

But the Mupu blaze quickly spread to the north, blackening several hundred hilly acres west of California 150. The California Highway Patrol closed the highway, which connects Santa Paula and Ojai.

About 11 a.m., just as firefighters on South Mountain were confident that they had all but contained the fire, the Mupu blaze jumped over a fire line and headed toward Sulphur Mountain.

“There’s too much fire and not enough people to fight it,” Cronk said. “The fire jumped right over the line and now who knows when we’ll stop it.”

Firefighters from other county stations were summoned to the Mupu fire, but a three-alarm fire in Thousand Oaks delayed some of them.

That fire, caused by a malfunction in a kitchen electrical outlet, caused an estimated $125,000 damage to two houses near Wildwood Park. Investigators said highly flammable wood shake roofs helped the blaze jump from house to house.

The house where the fire started was gutted on the top floor, but firefighters were able to salvage the downstairs portion. The owner, Dick Mitton, was not home and a neighbor reported the fire. Officials estimated damage at more than $125,000.

The second home sustained $5,000 to $10,000 in roof and smoke damage. “At least it’s still standing,” homeowner Sandra Finsten said. “Anything could have happened in this neighborhood today.”

Joanna M. Miller, Psyche Pascual, Mack Reed and Gerry Brailo Spencer also contributed to this story.