A brush fire north of Los Angeles has scorched more than 10,500 acres of land forcing 100 residences to evacuate.
What We Know:
- There were at least three homes that received the bulk of the damage from the fires; the neighborhood is located on the eastern flank of the fire. More than 5,000 buildings were also threatened by the flames. According to NBC Los Angeles, there have been no injuries reported. After the fire spread, it is expected for strong winds to be in the area on Thursday.
- Sam DiGiovanna, fire chief at the Verdugo Fire Academy stated, “This creates a lot of downdrafts and erratic winds, something they just don’t need right now. This is in some very rugged, hard to reach areas, so it’s going to be a long time before they get a containment line around this.” Weather reports say there will be a thunderstorm and light rain on Thursday as well.
- Reports indicate the fire started at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday near North Lake Hughes Road and Pine Canyon Road in the Angeles National Forest. The Los Angeles Fire Department was the first to access the flames and then received help from the Culver City, Beverly Hills and Santa Monica fire departments. The fire had burned over 400 acres by 4:30 p.m. and then reached 1,000 acres. Two hours later, the fire reached 10,000 acres and at this point, an evacuation was issued.
Timelapse video from our NBC4 photographer @ShootSeanNBCLA shows just how fast the a brush fire near Lake Hughes is growing. It's now at 6,000 acres and 0% contained. https://t.co/bq1H0Renwp pic.twitter.com/pJnkbAoUca
— NBC Los Angeles (@NBCLA) August 13, 2020
- Sgt. Ron Schaffer of the LA County Sheriff’s Department says that due to COVID-19 residents who evacuate will have to stay in their cars because shelters aren’t available. Despite this, there were several animal care centers open to those who needed care for their dogs.
Roads affected by the fire were closed by the California Highway Patrol.
