Soledad fire burns 1,100 acres, but firefighters make progress

The Soledad fire in Santa Clarita has burned more than 1,100 acres and forced evacuations, but firefighters were beginning to make progress Monday morning.

The brush fire broke out in the area of Soledad Canyon Road and spread rapidly, jumping the 14 Freeway around 4 p.m., according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

The 14 freeway was shut down for several hours.

The blaze, dubbed the Soledad fire, grew to 1,100 acres by 8 p.m. and was 0% contained, the Fire Department said. Four hundred personnel were battling the fire.

More than 200 residents living near the freeway in the Agua Dulce Canyon Road area were ordered to evacuate.

The Red Cross established a temporary evacuation site in Palmdale at the Victory Outreach church parking lot on 25th Street East. Evacuees will be required to stay in their vehicles.

Firefighters will work throughout the night to contain the blaze, officials said.

Fire officials urged Los Angeles County residents to refrain from setting off fireworks anywhere near dry brush.

In Hawthorne, all southbound lanes of the 405 Freeway at El Segundo Boulevard were also temporarily shut down because of a small brushfire, the California Highway Patrol said.

The causes of the fires were not immediately known.

The fires follow a night of relentless Fourth of July pyrotechnics. L.A. firefighters responded to thousands of emergency calls Saturday and extinguished at least one large blaze that consumed half an apartment complex in Northridge, officials said.

Dry conditions, hot temperatures and high winds in some parts of L.A. County have raised concerns about the potential for fires to spread quickly over the weekend.

Minimum humidities dropped to the single digits and teens in many inland and foothill areas on Sunday, while high temperatures in those areas were forecast to reach up to 10 degrees above normal, the National Weather Service said.

Elevated fire danger is expected to continue into Monday across inland areas such as Santa Clarita, with highs in the 90s and gusty winds in the forecast.

Times staff writer Alex Wigglesworth contributed to this report.