Fire Burns 200 Acres Near Lebec
A disabled car that caught fire beside the Golden State Freeway just north of the Los Angeles County line set off a brush fire Thursday that leaped the eight-lane roadway and burned across steep hillsides near Los Padres National Forest, authorities said.
Within three hours of starting at 1:45 p.m., the flames had destroyed nearly 200 acres in the Tejon Pass as nearly 500 firefighters fought the blaze, said Deputy Chief Steve Gage of the Kern County Fire Department.
Firefighters from Kern, Ventura, Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties were aided by helicopters and air tankers, Gage said. The fire was almost directly across from Fort Tejon State Park, about half a mile north of the town of Lebec, Gage said.
The blaze came close to a school, but had damaged no structures by late Thursday.
Using bulldozers and hand crews, firefighters dug a fire line in an effort to contain the fire to about 700 acres, Gage said.
“We hope to have it contained by midnight,” he said. “We just hope the fire line holds.”
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
