Wildfire east of Palmdale almost contained

A wildfire that burned 345 acres near the Los Angeles-San Bernardino county line was 85% contained Sunday evening, officials said.

The fire broke out Saturday afternoon in a remote area near the community of Llano, east of Palmdale, west of Victorville and north of the Angeles National Forest.

“What really gave us some challenges … were strong winds that were being pushed by a thunderstorm system,” said Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Roughly 350 firefighters battled the blaze.

Authorities said they were uncertain what sparked the blaze, though Berlant noted that pockets of Southern California had seen “significant lightning” in recent days.

It did not appear that any structures were threatened, Berlant said.

-- Scott Gold