Editor’s note: My family and I have been evacuated twice because of brush fires, it is a terrifying and emotional situation…our thoughts and prayers are with you all!
Updates:
Fire near Mulholland and Old Topanga, mandatory evacuations in effect. Fire at 100 acres. Evacuees headed to Calabasas High school.
Firefighters late Saturday afternoon were battling two dramatic brush fires, in West Hills and Calabasas, that were separated by only a few miles.
A three-alarm blaze was burning near Calabasas High School. The so-called Old Fire began shortly after 4 p.m. when a vehicle slammed into a pole and toppled multiple power lines, a Los Angeles County Fire Department supervisor said.
Three of the department’s helicopters were conducting water drops at the scene. Two of those helicopters were Firehawks capable of dumping 1,000 gallons of water at a time, agency said on Twitter. Additional aircraft were requested from Cal Fire and the Los Angeles Fire Department.
In West Hills, the LAFD was responding to the 2-acre Valley Circle Fire. Light flames were pushing flames downhill into a ravine, possibly threatening nearby homes, officials said in a news alert.
There were no immediate reports of injuries in either incident.