Brush Fire Strikes Near Motion Picture Home

In what firefighters called the first brush fire of the season, flames driven by high winds ripped through a small empty field along Mulholland Drive on Friday, threatening nearby condominiums and a convalescent home for retired entertainers.

No injuries were reported in the blaze, which began about 1 p.m. in the 4400 block of Valmar Road just south of the Motion Picture and Television Country House and Hospital.

Forty-five firefighters and two helicopters took slightly more than 30 minutes to douse the flames, according to Brian Humphrey, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman.

Residents in the area had cleared the brush surrounding their homes, preventing the fire from spreading, Humphrey said. No cause or damage estimates were available.

Later Friday afternoon, a 9-year-old boy alerted his neighbors in Canoga Park that their single-family home was on fire, Humphrey said. No one was injured, and the fire did not spread to neighboring homes in the 6700 block of Nevada Avenue.

Firefighters, who received a call for help about 4 p.m., said smoke poured from the attic and flames engulfed the structure soon after they arrived.

Forty firefighters took less than 30 minutes to extinguish the blaze, Humphrey said.

A natural gas leak behind a clothes dryer led to the blaze, which caused $115,000 in structural and content damage, Humphrey said.