Brush Fire Ignites in Eagle Rock, Prompting Evacuations in Glendale

A brush fire ignited in Eagle Rock on Sunday afternoon, prompting evacuations in Glendale and the closure of the 134 Freeway and 2 freeways as the flames worked their way slowly toward homes, authorities said. The fire was first reported about 4:10  p.m. along the 2900 block of Colorado Boulevard, according to Los Angeles Fire Department spokeswoman Margaret Stewart. The fire had grown to 30 acres and was 25 percent contained by 7:30 p.m., she said. The fire ignited on the south side of the 134 Freeway and spotted north across the roadway within half an hour, “slowly backing towards homes,” Stewart said in a written statement. “Additional resources requested for potential need for structural defense operations.” An Erickson Air Crane helicopter was brought in to help more than 200 firefighters from both the Los Angeles and Glendale fire departments. Three Los Angeles Fire Department helicopters also dropped water on the flames. “Firefighters continue to make progress around the perimeters of the fire, working with the challenge of creating a water supply on the freeway,” Stewart said. “Three LAFD helicopters are conducting continuous water drops,” she added. “Firefighters are making good progress against the left flank of the fire with additional resources committing to the right flank.” City officials in Glendale issued evacuation orders shortly after 6 p.m., affecting residents of Glenoaks Boulevard, between Mt. Carmel Drive and Bywood Drive, and all streets in between. An evacuation center was set up at the Glendale Civic Auditorium, 1401 N. Verdugo Road. About 100 homes were under evacuation orders, officials said.

No injuries were reported and no evacuations had been ordered on the Los Angeles side of the border, fire officials said. No structure damage was reported. Authorities shut down all lanes of the 134 Freeway between Figueroa Street and Glendale Avenue, as well as the 2 Freeway between Colorado Boulevard and Mountain Street. Glendale Fire Department Chief Silvio Lanzas said officials tentatively hoped to have evacuation orders and road closured lifted by Sunday night. The cause of the fire remained under investigation, he said. KTLA’s Alexandra Hernandez contributed to this report.