Largest wildfire in Los Angeles' history: More than 700 are forced to evacuate as 8,000 acres are scorched

Jessica Finn and Reuters
Daily Mail
Sun, 03 Sep 2017 11:00 UTC

LAFD on scene responding to fire along La Tuna Canyon Road near Burbank where flames devour a hill

The largest fire in Los Angeles history is engulfing thousands of acres of land and forcing residents to evacuate homes throughout the county.

The fire, dubbed the La Tuna Fire after the canyon where it erupted, has already burned through 8,000 acres of land, and the heatwave in the area along with erratic winds are proving major obstacles for firefighters trying control the blaze.

The fire broke out Friday and has already forced the partial closure of the 210 Freeway, a major thoroughfare.

The 210 is closed between the Glendale Freeway and Sunland Boulevard.

It's unclear when the freeway will completely reopen, according to the LA Times.

The blaze started with just one acre of brush on Friday.

The enormous blaze led authorities to evacuate more than 700 homes in a north Los Angeles neighborhood and in nearby Burbank and Glendale, officials said.

Flames from the La Tuna Fire blaze on a hill in the Shadow Hills on Saturday come dangerously close to this home in the foreground

The wildfire on the northern edge of Los Angeles rapidly grew on Saturday into what the mayor called the largest blaze in the city's history.

'We can't recall anything larger,' Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas during a 10am news conference Saturday.

The La Tuna Canyon fire burns in the hills above Burbank early Saturday as the fire marches along hillsides

'Our priority is saving people and saving property,' Terrazas said, according to the LA Times.

'There is a lot of un-burned fuel in this area,' he added, noting this is the first fire in the area in 33 years.

he La Tuna Fire rages in Burbank as flames eat through brush and trees on a hillslope

Fire in thick brush that has not burned in decades was slowly creeping down a rugged hillside on Saturday toward houses, with temperatures in the area approaching 100 degrees, the Los Angeles Fire Department said in an alert.

Authorities warned of erratic winds that could force them to widen the evacuation zone, after the fire destroyed one house in Los Angeles on Saturday.

The fire raged alongside the 210 Freeway in Sunland, California leading authorities to close portions of the busy thoroughfare

'Our biggest concern is the wind and weather,' the chief said. 'The erratic weather is our number one challenge. If there's no wind, this is a relatively easy fire to put out. But when the wind changes, it changes our priorities because other properties become at risk.'

The fire could make air unhealthy to breathe in parts of Los Angeles, the nation's second-largest city, and nearby suburbs, the South Coast Air Quality Management District said in an advisory.

La Tuna Fire rages behind the Hollywood Hills on Friday, with the famed Hollywood sign in the front, right

The fire was only 10 per cent contained Saturday with more than 500 firefighters battling it.

More than 400 miles to the north, the so-called Ponderosa Fire has burned 3,880 acres, or about 1,570 hectares, and destroyed 30 homes in Butte County since it broke out on Tuesday. It prompted authorities to issue evacuation orders earlier this week to residents of some 500 homes.

The blaze is 45 per cent contained.

A firefighter gets into position to battle the LaTuna fire burning alongside the 210 freeway in Sunland on Saturday

California Governor Jerry Brown issued an emergency declaration on Friday to free up additional resources to battle the Ponderosa blaze.

Wildfires in the U.S. West have burned more than 7.1 million acres since the beginning of the year, about 50 per cent more than during the same time period in 2016, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

More images here.