The California wildfire has charred more than 147,000 acres in Southern California and destroyed dozens of homes north of Los Angeles

CNN

A massive fire that has charred more than 147,000 acres in Southern California and destroyed dozens of homes north of Los Angeles was caused by arson, a U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman said Thursday.

A homicide investigation has been initiated by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department into the deaths of two firefighters as a result of the Station fire, said spokeswoman Rita Wears. The firefighters died Sunday in a vehicle crash while trying to escape fast-moving flames.

The fire was at 38 percent containment Thursday. It has been burning for more than a week. Fire officials said progress has been made, particularly on the west side of the fire, but the blaze was still producing hot spots, including one that forced the evacuation of 25 residents early Thursday.

Click here to see a photo gallery of the California wildfires.

Firefighters look on as fire rages near Ocean View Drive in Los Angeles on Saturday.

CNN

A fast-moving wildfire with a "mind of its own" threatens thousands of homes and businesses in Southern California near the Angeles National Forest.

Cooler temperatures Tuesday could help firefighters slow down a fast-moving, deadly wildfire that has charred nearly 122,000 acres in Southern California.

Two firefighters lost their lives Sunday trying to get control of the Station Fire, which is burning through steep and rugged terrain in the Angeles National Forest. This area north of Los Angeles has not seen a major fire in more than 60 years. It's the largest of at least five fires burning in the state.

Temperatures will be in the 90s, but they will be lower than the triple-digit highs that, combined with low humidity, caused the fire to explode in size from at least 40,000 acres on Sunday to more than 100,000 acres Monday.

Click here to see an interactive map of the fire.

CNN

Fueled by summer's dry conditions, millions of acres of America's forests burn each year. Take a look at this interactive to see how fires spread and the tools and techniques that are used to fight them.

Find the interactive here...

Coatesville, Pennsylvania has recorded more than 20 arson cases in 2009.

Rep. Adam Schiff
(D-CA)

Last week, I went for a mountain bike ride in the Verdugo Mountains, right above Stough Canyon near my home in Burbank, California. It was beautiful, but it was plain that fire season would soon be with us. I have introduced legislation along with Rep. Mary Bono to create a registry of arsonists and try to crack down on some of the arson fires that plague our region and country.

In the news just this week, there have been reports that at least one of the wildfires burning in Oklahoma may have been set by an arsonist. This is just the latest example of the need for such a registry to help catch arsonists and prevent them from striking again. The MATCH Act would create a national registry and require convicted arsonists to report where they live, work and go to school, and the database would include fingerprints, a photograph, vehicle information and other information on the arsonist. The information would only be made available to law enforcement agencies and other relevant personnel and not the general public.

When arson has occurred, it is critical to quickly find the individual involved in order to prevent future acts of arson and prosecute the individual responsible. This is often extremely difficult, because most arsonists do not have traditional motives. But arsonists are often repeat offenders and frequently they will use the same trademark tools – such as a unique incendiary device, a manner of starting a fire, or similar targets, such as houses of worship, or auto dealerships. In addition to putting law enforcement on notice, this also lets the convicted arsonists know that they can't hide from law enforcement for the purpose of committing another act of arson.

Keep reading

Check out the current satellite of wildfires across Oklahoma and north Texas. (Source: NWS Forecast Office, Norman, OK)

Ted Rowlands speaks with Wade Kirkwood, a convicted serial arsonist, who is serving a 9 year sentence for setting 11 fires. Watch the extended interview here, and watch the full report on AC360° tonight at 11p ET.

Program note: California investigators are trying to track down a suspected arsonist who may have set one of the current wildfires burning. Watch Ted Rowlands' full report on how a community tracked down a serial arsonist; along with Ted's jailhouse interview with the man whose compulsion destroyed hundreds of homes and terrified thousands of people.

Firefighters battle a wildfire that broke out early Thursday morning in the western part of Los Angeles, California.

Ted Rowlands
CNN Los Angeles Correspondent

Who starts fires for thrills? Wade Kirkwood does. We met Kirkwood in prison, where he's serving a nine year sentence in Washington State for setting 11 fires in 2004.

Kirkwood told us he's had the urge to set fires since he was a teenager, he says the rush he gets from setting a blaze is better than anything he's ever felt.

I understand on some level the motivations for a lot of different crimes, but arson has always been difficult for me to appreciate, until I met Wade Kirkwood.

There's no doubt in my mind that this guy, and I assume other arsonists, are wired differently. Wade Kirkwood loves everything about setting fires, he says he likes planning them, lighting them and watching them.

Keep reading

Program note: California investigators are trying to track down a suspected arsonist who may have set one of the current wildfires burning. Watch Ted Rowlands' report on how a community tracked down a serial arsonist; along with Ted's jailhouse interview with the man whose compulsion destroyed hundreds of homes and terrified thousands of people.

Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources Officer Gary Margheim shows CNN photographer Tom Larson where he found a critical clue - the arsonist's 'sparking' device.

Michael Cary
CNN Western Region Senior Producer

Imagine waking up on a warm summer day wondering whether or not an arsonist may spark a fire that would wipe out your home? That's the nightmare residents of Kittitas County in central Washington dealt with daily during the summer of 2004 when fires were erupting sporadically, sometimes as many as three in one day.

"The public was stressed out. We had people not wanting to leave their homes," said Kittitas County Sheriff Gene Dana. "We had rumors of people on hilltops with rifles in the afternoon watching for people that might be trying to light fires."

Sheriff Dana set up a multi-agency task force filled with federal, state and local law enforcement and fire officials to catch the arsonist and bring a sense of security back to the rural community.

The fires started small, mostly on the side of highways. Then the arsonist started setting them near structures. The largest, dubbed the Elk Heights fire, forced hundreds to evacuate and ultimately destroyed two homes. That was bad, but 11 days later, the arsonist sparked three fires in one afternoon sending a shudder through law enforcement.

Keep reading