As of 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, the fire was 25 percent contained. It has burned about 320 acres north of the Mt. Baldy Village area within the Angeles National Forest.

"We have changed our tactics as far as crews hiking in," said Frank Garrido, Los Angeles County Fire Department spokesman. "We are now spiking crews in - airlifting (firefighters) into safe refuge areas, and they will hike in a considerably less distance."

There are 623 firefighters battling the blaze, which has a medium amount of dry brush. The difficulty level is described as extreme.

The weather will be a concern as winds are expected to kick up after midnight, said Bruce Quintelier, fire information officer with the U.S. Forest Service.

Gusts of up to 40 mph were possible overnight, he said. Thursday is expected to be warmer and drier, Quintelier said.

While firefighters were busy on their end, residents of the area were proceeding with business as usual.

As smoke billowed high above the mountains across from Helen Hansen's home, she used her morning hours to do yard work.

"I have been through a lot of these," said Hansen, 87, as she cleaned leaves and blossoms from her front yard.

Hansen, who has lived in the Village area for 40 years, said when a fire comes to the mountains, residents get ready to help in any way they can.

"We are all on standby to feed the firemen or help dispatch. You do anything you can, and when you're told to get out, you leave," she said.

On Tuesday, when she first heard about the flames, Hansen packed all of her legal papers and anything else she thought she would need to take down the hill in case of an emergency.

But even the constant threat of natural disasters couldn't make her leave for good.

"This is a wonderful place to live," she said. "It's not in the hustle and bustle of the world."

Hansen said she would accept the fear of a fire, and anything else that happens, to live where she does.

"You take what comes along," she said.

The Village was quiet Wednesday morning, except for the sound of hardworking aircraft overhead.

About seven helicopters could be seen dropping materials on the fire, including retardant, water and foam.

Crew numbers had nearly doubled since the previous day as firefighters continued to work at putting the fire out, Garrido said.

About six rural cabins in the vicinity of Bear Canyon have been evacuated.

Mt. Baldy Road at Shinn is closed to the public and open to residents only, according to a Southern California Interagency Incident Management news release.

Glendora Ridge Road is closed at Mt. Baldy Road and is closed at the East Fork. Firefighters expect Mt. Baldy Road to be closed again today.

"It's an inconvenience, but it doesn't bother us," said Alan Bescoby, 83, who has lived in Mt. Baldy since 1967.

Joey Martin, 71, said she has been through at least five fires in the 40 years she has lived in the mountains.

"Your first emotion is always worry," she said. "You never know which way a fire's going to go."

Like many mountainside residents, she has a fire routine that includes packing her belongings and calling relatives.

"We don't expect the fires, but we do worry about them," she said.

Staff writer Jannise Johnson contributed to this report.

(c) 2008 The Sun, San Bernardino, Calif.. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.

Written by Lori Consalvo