Fire Threatens Famed Hollywood Sign

A wildfire spread rapidly through the rugged Hollywood Hills on Friday, tearing through dry brush but not immediately threatening nearby neighborhoods and business districts.

The 150-acre fire started next to the Oakwood Toluca Hills, a corporate housing complex northwest of downtown, and spread up the north face of the hills. A column of smoke roiled into the sky behind the famous Hollywood sign that stands on the south face of the hills.

Oakwood Worldwide spokeswoman Angela Lapre said one building was evacuated at the Fire Department’s request. “At this point our number one concern is the safety our residents,” she said.

Photo Credit: AP

Some 200 firefighters and five helicopters battled the flames, said Fire Department spokesman Ron Myers. Helicopters operated from landing pads atop nearby Mount Lee, a landmark topped with transmitters.

There were no reports of structural damage, he said. The blaze was reported at 12:50 p.m. The cause was under investigation.

“I don’t know the exact last date we’ve seen a fire in this particular area but the hills are prone to fires throughout the year,” he said. “This is just a little bit earlier than what we normally see.”

Southern California is parched after an extremely dry winter that left rainfall levels more than 11 inches below normal. Just 2.47 inches has fallen since July 1.

Humidity also was low, about 10 percent, which makes vegetation burn more easily. But an onshore flow of air from the Pacific was expected later in the day.

“That will bring ocean air, which is more moist, toward the fire,” said Stuart Seto of the National Weather Service.

The Hollywood Hills bisect Los Angeles, forming the southern side of the San Fernando Valley. The blaze started east of Universal City, south of the Warner Bros. studios complex in Burbank and to the west of 4,200-acre Griffith Park and Forest Lawn Memorial Park cemetery.

Scott Rowe, vice president of corporate communications for Warner Bros. Entertainment said the company was monitoring the situation closely.

“The studio is fairly filled with smoke at the moment,” he said. “It’s at our back door. I think a couple of our entrances have been closed at this point and we’re operating normally but that could change any minute.”

The Oakwood Toluca Hills housing complex has been a popular place for aspiring child actors to stay over the years.

Precautions were taken at Sunset Ranch, which offers horse rides from the south side of the hills over to the San Fernando Valley side. Manager Jason Marchant, 34, said three scouts were sent out on horseback to make sure the fire didn’t move toward the ranch.

“The horses are haltered up and are ready to mobilize at a second’s notice,” he said.

Photo Credit: AP

Flames erupted just about a block from the 60-year-old Smoke House restaurant in Burbank.

“It’s scary. I’ve been telling my employees to get ready to evacuate, just in case,” said general manager Israel Aviles, 38.

John Black, a cashier at Miceli’s Italian restaurant in Universal City, said most of the skyline above the historic eatery was thick with black, gray and orange smoke.

“I’m concerned about the fire because I live really close to here,” he said.

Lights flickered in some parts of the city during the fire, which burned near some power transmission lines.

“We have had no outages as a result of the fire,” said spokeswoman Gale Harris of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

“The smoke is affecting the lines, but we just made adjustments. We’re OK,” she said.