3 Firefighters Injured In 132-Acre San Dimas Brush Fire
SAN DIMAS (CBSLA) -- A brush fire erupted in the San Gabriel foothills of San Dimas early Friday morning and quickly spread, but burned away from home and did not force any evacuations.
The San Dimas Fire was first reported just after 4 a.m. in the area of San Dimas Canyon and East Golden Hills roads, near the border between San Dimas and La Verne.
"Could see the flames pretty significantly, we have a two-story house, we heard the helicopters and all the action all over the place," La Verne resident Mark Wellington said.
It grew to 132 acres, burning uphill in steep terrain and heavy, dry brush, according to Los Angeles County Fire Department. Neighbors told CBSLA that those hillsides have not burned in at least a decade. Fortunately, the fire was burning northwest and away from homes.
Along with the LACFD, La Verne Fire Department and USFS crews also responded and were battling the blaze with the help of several water-dropping helicopters.
Forward progress was initially halted at around 9:30 a.m. with containment at 25%, USFS reported. However, the fire later crossed containment lines a little before noon.
At 3 p.m., the department announced the fire was 45% contained and had
burned through 132 acres.
Homes were not threatened and no evacuations were issued. The wind was light, spelling favorability for firefighting crews.
The San Dimas Canyon Golf Course was also serving as a buffer between the fire and the neighborhoods.
"Any time you've got a break, or a green belt of vegetation, such as a golf course, that's gonna give you that buffer, that space, so that's definitely an asset," L.A. County Fire Capt. Ron Haralson said.
During the height of the fire, ash fell on the neighborhoods below.
"Every once in a while the fire envelops a tree, or several trees, and it flares up," La Verne resident and CBSLA Digital Director BJ Dahl told CBS2 News This Morning by phone as he watched the flames burn in the hillsides.
Three firefighters suffered minor injuries during the firefight and had to be airlifted out, the LACFD reported.
There was no word on a cause.
California has seen a historic number of wildfires since August, including the 115,000-acre Bobcat Fire which broke in early September the Angeles National Forest and destroyed at least 83 homes.
Two large wildfires broke out on Oct. 26: The 14,300-acre Blue Ridge Fire in Corona, and the 13,400-acre Silverado Fire east of Irvine. Both forced tens of thousands of people to flee.
