Firefighters Battle Growing California Brush Fire

GLENDALE – More than 200 fire personnel from multiple agencies battle fire; 2 sustain minor injuries.

Ground crews and helicopters joined forces Sunday to fight a brush fire in the hills above Brand Park that burned 150 acres, officials said.

The Glendale Fire Department received a report about a brush fire around 12:30 p.m. Sunday in the 1600 block of West Mountain Street in the northwestern part of the city.

By nightfall, more than 200 fire personnel from multiple agencies were battling the fire as it grew into the area’s steep canyons, said Dan Bell, the community relations coordinator for Glendale.

No homes or businesses had to be evacuated, and the fire appeared to be burning in a westward direction, farther into the canyons. Still, firefighters were working on challenging and sometimes inaccessible terrain, Bell said.

“You can imagine for the guys on the ground hiking with hoses to create a fire line, it’s pretty rough,” Bell said.

It’s unclear why the brush fire spread so quickly. The temperature was 74 degrees and the wind was only 3 mph Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

About 100 fire department agencies across the region and five airships assisted Glendale firefighters, Public Information Officer Thomas R. Lorenz said. Agencies included those from the Glendale, Pasadena, L.A. County and Los Angeles city fire departments, as well forestry hotshot crews.

Hikers in the area were not in any immediate danger, but fire officials hoisted them out as a precaution, the Los Angeles Fire Department tweeted. Three hikers were treated for dehydration, Lorenz said.

Two firefighters sustained minor injuries when a rock fell on them. One was treated for scrapes, and the other did not require treatment, Bell said.

The cause of the fire was unknown.