Evacuation Warning Issued As Bobcat Fire North Of Duarte More Than Doubles In Size
NEAR DUARTE (CBSLA) – A brush fire which sparked in the Angeles National Forest north of Duarte Sunday grew rapidly overnight, more than doubling in size by Monday morning, prompting the Los Angeles County Fire Department to issue an evacuation warning.
The Bobcat Fire has scorched 4,871 acres and still had zero containment as of 8 p.m. Monday, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
Due to the fire's rapid growth, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department directed residents in the Monrovia foothills area below the Bobcat Fire area to be prepared to evacuate. Those with large animals, horses and cattle were told to begin moving those animals.
The warning was issued to residents north of Hillcrest Boulevard and north of Greystone Avenue, along with those between Hillcrest Boulevard and Greystone Avenue, south to Foothill Boulevard.
The blaze broke out a little after noon Sunday amid triple-digit temperatures near the Cogswell Dam and the West Fork Day Use area. California Highway Patrol officers helped campers evacuate quickly before sundown.
Structures were threatened, but its unclear if any had been damaged or destroyed. There were no mandatory evacuations. About 100 firefighters were assigned to the fire with the help of four water-dropping helicopters and five fixed-wing aircraft.
Caltrans shut down Highway 39 in both directions at El Encanto Park.
There was still no word on a cause.
The heat wave which had engulfed the region since Friday will continue into Monday evening. A brush fire also broke out Saturday in Yucaipa, sparked by pyrotechnics. The El Dorado Fire has forced 21,000 people to flee their homes.
