Fish Fire Explodes to 3,000 Acres; One Firefighter Injured

DUARTE, CA — One firefighter was injured Monday in the Fish Fire above Duarte that has burned 3,000 acres and forced the evacuation of residents from Crystal Lake down to the fire and all campsites including Camp Williams, officials said.

Additional mandatory evacuations were ordered Monday evening for Duarte Mesa Residents living above Markwood Street between Westvale Road and Tocino Drive, and above Conata between Tocino Drive and Mountain Crest Road. The order affects about 685 homes.

The fire started at around 12:30 p.m. and quickly spread because of dry fuels. At 1:35 p.m. it was reported at 400 acres. At 2:30 p.m. it had grown to 1,000 acres. By around 5 p.m., the fire doubled to 2,000 acres. By 10 p.m. the fire has charred 3,000 acres.

One firefighter was transported to the hospital for heat exhaustion, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

The fire started near homes but burned north toward the forest, away from homes.

"That was extremely fortunate for us," Los Angeles County Fire Department Deputy Chief John Tripp said.

While the fire was moving away from homes, officials have ordered mandatory evacuations for the 3100 block to the 3500 block of Brookridge Drive in Duarte, Trip said.

All other areas in northeastern Duarte are under voluntary evacuations, according to the city.

Firefighters are remaining in the area under structure-protection mode in case the wind change, Trip said.

Residents displaced by the fire can find shelter at the Duarte Community Center, 1600 Huntington Dr..

"Residents can also board their small animals at a school facility located at 1850 Highland Avenue, Duarte. Large animals, including horses, can board at the Pomona Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Avenue, Pomona," said Deputy Juanita Navarro-Suarez of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Information Bureau.

The fire was inching dangerous close to power lines. Power was down for a time for 189 customers in the Duarte/Azusa area, Southern California spokeswoman Mary Ann Milbourn said.

The utility is working closely with fire officials to monitor the situation, she said.

Some of the power lines there are transmission lines, bringing electricity to the Los Angeles basin, Milbourn said.

Officials at the California Independent System Operator are also monitoring the situation, an agency spokeswoman Anne Gonzales said. Some Southern California Edison transmission lines were down and a few Los Angeles Department of Water and Power lines are being threatened, but there are no threat to grid reliability at this time.

The grid is already being stressed by the heat wave in Southern California, and Cal-ISO officials declared a Flex Alert for Monday to residents to conserve energy.

Nearby, there is another fire, dubbed the Reservoir Fire, burning in the Angeles National Forest above Azusa. That fire was last reported at 1,500 acres.

The Fish Fire was burning north toward the Reservoir Fire. Officials fear the two fires may merge, but right now the two are being separated by a canyon, Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Keith Mora said.

Nearby residents in Bradbury, Monrovia and Glendora, while are not currently in the fire's way, were warned to prepare for evacuation overnight should the wind change, Trip said.

Around 600 homes have been evacuated in both fires. The cause of the Fish Fire was still under investigation.

Temperature in the San Gabriel Valley was at more than 100 degrees at noon and the National Forest Service raised the fire danger level from high to extremely high last week in reparation for the heatwave currently plaguing Southern California.

— Photos courtesy of the LASD

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