Blaze Behind Hospital Brought Under Control
As smoke hung over much of the Los Angeles area Wednesday from an out-of-control grass fire in Azusa, a smaller fire behind Olive View-UCLA Medical Center was finally controlled after charring 80 acres.
There were no reports of injuries or damage, said Bob Collis, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department. Only an abandoned outbuilding burned.
The fire began just after 6 p.m. Tuesday in hilly terrain near the 13900 block of Fenton Avenue and Olive View Drive, authorities said.
The fire was initially fanned by light winds, which died down by nightfall, aiding firefighters. The fire quickly moved north, away from residential areas.
About 150 firefighters--including some crews from the county and the U.S. Forest Service--aided by two city water-dropping helicopters and two Forest Service tankers dropping fire retardant battled the flames into the night, authorities said.
The tankers were pulled out by nightfall, but the city helicopters continued to fight the flames until shortly before midnight Tuesday, when the fire was controlled, Collis said.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation, he said.
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