The horses died in two fires this week — and at least three people were injured — even as trainers and rescuers tried to save as many as they could.
The fires sweeping through Southern California, destroying property and threatening human lives, have also killed at least 54 horses, according to the authorities.
The California Horse Racing Board said Thursday that at least 25 horses were killed and at least three people were injured when a fire burned through about eight barns at the San Luis Rey training center in Bonsall, in San Diego County. The area, near the county’s northern border, is known for its equestrian facilities.
Mike Marten, a spokesman for the racing board, said in an interview on Friday that the death toll was likely to rise.
“The area hardest hit is still smoldering, so no one is allowed in,” he said.
Two days earlier, 29 horses were killed by the Creek Fire at a ranch in Sylmar in the San Fernando Valley, according to a statement from the Department of Animal Care and Control in Los Angeles County.
The department said that it arrived at the ranch on Tuesday morning and found a barn burning, its roof collapsing. Its officers immediately retrieved two horses and a puppy, then returned to the barn to rescue four more horses.
Flames blocked their entry to the barn. Additional officers arrived and were eventually able to rescue more horses, breaking padlocks on stalls in order to get them out. The department transported three horses to Pierce College nearby, where one was euthanized because its injuries were so severe.
Southern California is one of the nation’s largest horse-racing centers, thanks to an inviting climate where horses can be run year-round. San Luis Rey serves as a hub to trainers and others shuttling back and forth between the courses of the region’s racing circuit, Del Mar, Santa Anita Park and Los Alamitos Race Course.
Video from the San Luis Rey fire showed pandemonium as horses scrambled free, kicking dust into the air as flames began to encroach on the property. One trainer, Cliff Sise, told a local CBS station that he had been unable to rescue his horse from a burning barn.
“It was dark, everything was hot and she wouldn’t come out,” Mr. Sise said. “I opened the pen and tried to get behind her and get her out, and she wouldn’t get out. She burned to death that quick.”
Nearly 500 horses were at the training center when the fire hit and Mr. Marten said that at least three people were injured while trying to rescue them: two trainers, Joe Herrick and Martine Bellocq, and a rider whose name he did not yet know.
Ms. Bellocq was in a medically induced coma at a hospital while being treated for the second- and third-degree burns covering more than 50 percent of her body, said her brother-in-law, Remi Bellocq, who runs a jockey school in Kentucky. He said that she was burned while trying to save the six horses she had at San Luis Rey, at least three of which died in the fire.
He explained that horses facing a dangerous situation were liable to panic and flee to where they feel the most secure.
“Whenever there’s a situation like a barn fire, just cutting them loose out of their stall to get away might not work because they’re so fearful that they might go back to where they’re comfortable, which is the barn,” he said. “The trick is to get away from there and secure them in another corral or paddock where they can’t come back.”
The Stronach Group, a track operator, is working with the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club to raise money to help those affected, as is the California Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Foundation .
Horses rescued from the fire at the San Luis Rey training center were taken to Del Mar racetrack, where between 800 and 850 horses have taken refuge from the fire.
The racetrack started receiving horses at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, and the animals continued to come in throughout the night, a spokeswoman, Annie Pierce, said in a phone interview.
Ms. Pierce said the people dropping them off ran the gamut from individual owners to farmers and ranchers.
“It’s been really heartwarming to see as a lot of them come in because they’re just so appreciative to have a place to bring their animals,” she said. “As you can imagine, anxiety levels are really high. Some owners are dropping their horses off, then going back to get more animals.”
She said that the racetrack’s new guests were not limited solely to equines. Goats, cows and chickens were also sheltering there, along with a potbelly pig that was found running by the side of the road.
