Crown fire is 87% contained, authorities say

Firefighters said Sunday that the Crown fire, which has burned 14,000 acres in northern Los Angeles County, was 87% contained and was expected to be fully surrounded by Monday evening.

“We’re expecting to send everyone home,” said Los Angeles County Fire Department Supervisor Bernard Peters.

At its height, the blaze, which broke out Thursday, threatened more than 2,000 homes in western Palmdale and the Leona Valley. About 1,700 firefighters used several water-dropping helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, including a DC-10 air tanker to help battle flames.

But by Sunday afternoon, more than 500 firefighters had been released, and hundreds of people who had been evacuated were able to return to their homes.

Firefighters had worked through the night, constructing additional containment lines, extinguishing embers and patrolling burn areas, officials said.

Inspector Don Kunitomi, a spokesman for the county Fire Department, said that despite low humidity, calmer winds had helped firefighters in dousing the blaze.

“They didn’t have to work on fighting active flames,” Kunitomi said, “so they were able to progress with putting containment lines around the fire.”

The cause of the blaze has not been determined.

On Friday, L.A. County Fire Department Deputy Chief Michael Bryant said the initial investigation into its origin centered on a vacant lot where workers were apparently using a hammer to extract bolts from tire rims.

But Kunitomi said Sunday that he could not comment on details of the investigation, which was proceeding.

“It always takes a long time,” Kunitomi said. “We have guys working on that full time. We have to let them do their job.”

Elsewhere in Los Angeles County, firefighters quickly knocked down a small spot fire in Topanga Canyon. A 21-acre blaze along Las Virgenes Road near Calabasas was also extinguished.

ann.simmons@latimes.com

Times staff writer Jason Felch contributed to this report.