Last of 5 Wildfires Contained; 75,000 Acres Burn in All : Disasters: The final blaze in series is north of Glendora. Focus shifts to preventing mudslides and restoring vegetation.

The Bridge fire, the last in a series of five voracious wildfires that have blistered more than 75,000 acres across Southern California’s foothills and mountains, was finally contained late Sunday evening, authorities said.

Sparked a week ago in the Angeles National Forest north of Glendora, the Bridge fire consumed more than 7,200 acres. It destroyed three cabins and several unoccupied structures while threatening the Crystal Lake recreation area and the San Gabriel Valley wilderness area before it was subdued.

Five firefighters had minor injuries from the stubborn blaze, the cause of which was undetermined and so far has cost more than $3.7 million to fight. In all, more than 800 firefighters--including teams from as far afield as Washington state, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Arkansas--worked to battle the fire, which had raged in steep, often inaccessible forest terrain.

California 39 remained closed this Labor Day weekend at El Encanto Road. Authorities also closed Glendora Mountain Road at Big Dalton Canyon Road to all traffic, and Glendora Ridge Road at Mount Baldy Road to everyone except area residents with identification.

On Saturday, the Willow fire, which burned for a week near Lake Arrowhead and the adjacent High Desert, was fully contained after scorching more than 63,400 acres--said to be the largest fire in the San Bernardino National Forest in 80 years.

The Willow fire destroyed 19 structures, including several homes in the Apple and Lucerne valleys, and gutted 52 vehicles. More than 2,700 firefighters battled the blaze and the U.S. Forest Service estimated the cost of suppressing it at $8.76 million. Forestry officials initially thought it was caused by an illegal campfire but now say they aren’t sure how it started.

As the remaining hot spots in both fires were being tended Sunday, teams of experts fanned out to begin assessing damage sustained by the fragile environment and to stabilize soil in the burn areas.

One major concern is potential erosion in the Angeles National Forest from upcoming winter storms, said Joe Gonzalez, a burn area emergency rehabilitation team leader.

“Mild rains won’t do much damage, but heavy rain would produce serious flooding potential,” he said.

The team of soil scientists, hydrologists, fish biologists and computer experts also will determine how best to restore vegetation--mostly hardwood chaparral such as manzanita, big Douglas fir and sagebrush--natural to the region.

Experts will determine whether to reseed all or portions of the 63,000 acres of San Bernardino Mountain forest lost in the wake of the Willow fire. The area is rich in several species of pine and--as forest gives way to desert--chaparral, said forest service spokesman Hal Seyden.

One problem confronting experts is that despite the intensity of the Willow fire, the area is by no means fireproof, said Seyden. That is because of a hardy, highly flammable European grass introduced to California decades ago and now supplanting more fire-resistant native grasses.

“It’s a bad situation because it comes back so quickly and it’s so flashy,” Seyden said, referring to the combustibility of the European grass. “We go back in and replant trees and native grasses, but we can’t control it. It is unlikely the area will ever look the same as it did,” he said. “And if it does, it will be many, many years.”

The fires kept holiday vacationers away from many mountain resorts and recreation areas. Officials closed all trails and roads in San Bernardino National Forest on the north side of Lake Arrowhead, as well as 12 campgrounds to the east.

Even in Big Bear Lake, which was not threatened, hotels and other businesses reported canceled reservations. The San Gabriel Canyon remained closed to the public, and officials said civilian cars found within the area will be cited.

However, there were still some recreational opportunities to be had. On California 38, south of Big Bear Lake and along California 18 near the lake, several campgrounds were open, forest officials said.