A massive brush fire broke out north of Glendale City on Sunday, covering 150 acres of steep California hills.
According to NBC Los Angeles , containing the fire required the help of nearly 200 firefighters from Burbank, Pasadena and Los Angeles City, and the help of the U.S. Forest Service. The Glendale Fire Department reported the fire was first spotted at 12:30pm near Brand Park in the 1600 block of Mountain Street. In order to keep the fire under control, crew members of the department had to camp out nearby overnight. By Monday morning, the fire was only about 30 percent contained, according to officials.
Five hikers in the area had to be airlifted out of Glendale via helicopter and brought to safety. KTLA5 reported that three of the hikers had to be treated for dehydration . Nobody was seriously injured in the fire, but it was moving dangerously fast.
Officials determined the fire was not a threat to local residents and no evacuations were issued. Some roads were closed and structure protection crews were pushed back to stay clear of the rampant fire.
Despite not being forced to evacuate, a local resident named Eli Essa said, “We’re just going to take things that are important to us if we have to evacuate, hop in the car and get out of here.”
Battling the fire took five airships and the work of 100 different multi-agency groups performing “hand work and neighborhood protection,” according to KTLA5 .
Dan Bell, community relations coordinator for the city of Glendale, said that fighting the fire was difficult due to the steep terrain. “The fire is burning in areas where hand crews can’t get to, nor would we want to put them in harm’s way,” said Bell , according to the Glendale News Press . Two firefighters were struck by falling rocks and one had minor scrapes, but nobody was seriously hurt. Bell added, “It kind of tells you the terrain they’re working with.”
This isn’t the first major fire Glendale has experienced. The Inquisitr reported on a threatening fire back in 2009.
#BrandPark Incident continues to cover 150 acres burned. Fire personnel estimate there is 30% containment. #MyGlendale @GlendaleCAFire
— City of Glendale, CA (@MyGlendale) June 23, 2014
Approx. 100 ground personnel working to contain fire at #BrandPark . Thank you to our local firefighters for their hard work! @GlendaleCAFire
— City of Glendale, CA (@MyGlendale) June 23, 2014
LA City is providing 2 water dropping helicopters to assist with the #BrandPark Incident. #MyGlendale — City of Glendale, CA (@MyGlendale) June 23, 2014
