Strong wind gusts send embers from the hillside fire
into trees near homes in a Glendora neighboorhood
By Jonathan Lloyd, Nyree Arabian and Joel Cooke
| Thursday, Jan 16, 2014 | Updated 11:21 AM PST
Three people were arrested in connection with a fast-
moving brush fire that burned at least two homes when
it raced down a hillside and cast wind-blown embers
into a foothill community south of Southern
California's Angeles National Forest.
Mandatory evacuations were ordered as firefighters on
the ground and in the air continue the attack in
Glendora, a San Gabriel Valley city located about 30
miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. The Colby
Fire, reported at about 6 a.m., quickly grew to 1,700
acres and sent thick smoke that could be seen
throughout the Los Angeles region.
Embers blown by 30-mph wind gusts into a neighborhood
set palm trees ablaze like matchsticks and sparked
several small spot fires.
Wes Purkiss and his family evacuated early Thursday. He
saw thick, black smoke coming from near his home above
Sierra Madre Avenue.
"I can't see my house, but there's some black smoke
rising from my house or (the) house across the street,"
said Purkiss, who has resided in the house for 30
years. "There's nobody up there now."
The fire was estimated at 30 acres at about 6 a.m.
before growing to 125 acres by 7:45 a.m. At 9 a.m.,
fire officials estimated the acreage at 200 before the
fire exploded to 1,700 at 10 a.m.
"It was growing pretty rapidly," said Jim Tomaselli, US
Forest Service. "The fire was initially inaccessible to
our engines, it wasn't up against a road."
Mandatory evacuations were ordered for the area south
of the fire and east to Azusa. Aerial video showed
residents, some carrying pets, running to vehicles and
leaving the neighborhood through thick smoke.
No injuries have been reported, according to the Los
Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
The U.S. Forest Service detained one person near the
origin of the fire, according to the Los Angeles County
Sheriff's Department. Glendora police arrested two
other people after a 911 caller reported "suspicious"
activity in the area after the start of the fire.
The men were booked on suspicion of recklessly starting
a fire, Staab said.
"They are being cooperative," said Glendora Police
Chief Tim Staab. "One reported that they started a camp
fire and the wind picked up."
Seven engines, three water-dropping helicopters, a
fixed-wing SuperScooper and four hand crews are
battling the fire.
Details regarding a cause were not immediately
available.
"This particular area has not burned for quite a long
time," said Jonathan Lambert, general manger at Classic
Coffee. "There's a lot of old growth on that hill."
Wind gusts in the area were reported at about 10 mph,
but wind speeds picked up to about 30 mph later
Thursday morning. Winds continued late Thursday
morning, but appeared to push the fire away from
residential areas and into the forest.
One resident told NBC4 the wind-blown embers are
"torching everything they touch," including parts of
houses and the dry fronds of palm trees.
"As the fire moved down the hill, it set the patio
cover on fire, but the neighbors got out there with
hoses and put that out," said resident Lois Sparking.
"There's unburned ground above it, so apparently that
was from embers."
Members of Glendora Seventh-Day Adventist Church also
fought flames with garden hoses. A palm tree on the
property burned, but no structural damage was reported.
Up to 80 customers are without power, according to
Southern California Edison.
Red Flag fire weather warnings are in effect through
Friday. The warnings include increased staffing levels
for fire agencies and pre-deployment of firefighting
resources in the warning area.
"Due to the dry vegetation and summer-like conditions
we've had, our department was over-staffed today," said
LA County Fire Chief Daryl Osby. "Because of that
preparation, we were able to save hundreds, if not
thousands, of homes."
The warnings come after the driest year on record in
California and what could be the driest January in the
state. The all-time low rainfall record in January
occurred in 1984, when just 0.3 inches of rain fell
across California.
Evacuations, Closures
The evacuation order includes homes between Grand
Avenue and Glendora Mountain Road, north of Sierra
Madre.
Evacuated pets can be taken to Pasadena Humane Society,
361 S. Raymond Ave. in Pasadena.
The following Glendora schools are closed: La Fetra,
Cullen, Goddard, Sandburg, and Sellers. Students will
need to be picked up at the school site. The following
schools will remain open: Glendora High School,
Whitcomb High School, Stanton, Sutherland, and Williams
Educational Center.
Hope Lutheran School also is closed.
Citrus College was closed Thursday because of the fire.
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