- About 1,600 of 3,600 evacuated people have been allowed to return home
- Three campers are suspected of starting the wildfire
- They allegedly threw papers into a campfire, and a wind carried away embers
Los Angeles (CNN) -- The Los Angeles-area wildfire that was apparently ignited by a campfire is being brought under some control, with 30% of it contained, authorities said Friday, an improvement from how it was uncontrollable a day earlier, when it scorched 1,700 acres.
About 800 fire crews have been battling a blaze that began before dawn Thursday. It was allegedly started by three men camping in the Los Angeles County foothills near Glendora, California, authorities said.
About 3,600 people were evacuated, and as of late Thursday night, about 1,600 of them were allowed to return home, according to the Angeles National Forest's update on the Incident Information System's website.
Meanwhile, a red flag warning was extended to Friday because of anticipated warm, dry breezes called Santa Ana winds, InciWeb said.
The wildfire allegedly began when three campers were tossing paper into a campfire, and a gust of wind spread embers, authorities said.
The three men, all in their early 20s, were arrested on suspicion of recklessly starting a fire, said Police Chief Tim Staab of Glendora. One man is from Glendora and another is from Irwindale, he said. Bail was set Thursday at $20,000 for each.
"The way it's told to us is that all three of them were together at the time, sitting around this campfire," he said. "Breeze kicked up, and that's what caused this fire.
"It's not a camping area, but people do camp up in the hills above Glendora," Staab said.
The arrests were made after authorities received a call that at least two people were suspiciously walking away from the fire, the chief said.
The three men arrested were identified as Jonathan Carl Jerrell, 23; Clifford Eugene Henry Jr., 22; and Steven Robert Aguirre, 21, police said. They and their attorneys couldn't be reached for comment.
The wildfire, named the Colby Fire, destroyed two homes and injured one person Thursday morning, Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl Osby said.
The injured civilian suffered minor burns, Osby told reporters.
"We predicted that this is going to be an intense fire season because this is the third year of an ongoing drought," he said.
There hasn't been a fire in Glendora's foothills since 1968, so the area has lots of brush and other fuel for a wildfire, authorities said.
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