Firefighters Working to Increase Containment of Barham Fire That Burned 80 Acres in Hollywood Hills

Crews on Sunday continued to work on containing the Barham Fire, which burned at least 80 acres in the Hollywood Hills as more than 230 firefighters battled the flames near the Warner Brothers Studios lot, the Los Angeles Fire Department said. Aided by wind conditions, firefighters managed to quickly stop the blaze from spreading after it erupted shortly before 2 p.m. Saturday near the 3600 block of Barham Boulevard. The wildfire was about 80% contained by Sunday afternoon. “The wind was working against the fire, pushing it away from structures, so we didn’t have that structure threat immediately,” LAFD Capt. Cody Weireter said. The blaze was burning in a patch of thick vegetation nestled in a triangle between Universal City, Warner Bros. Studios and the Hollywood sign. At one point, an onshore breeze fanned the fire in a different direction, but firefighters quickly adjusted and attacked the flames from the air, LAFD Assistant Chief J.D. Drake told KTLA Sunday. A structure defense group was on the ground, making sure that apartments on the west side of the fire were not exposed, Drake said. While there were no formal evacuation orders issued Saturday, people living closest to the fire were encouraged to stay inside, LAFD said. CNN reported that the Warner Bros. Studios lot was voluntarily evacuated as a precautionary measure. By Sunday morning, the department had 170 firefighters working to put out small hot spots and strengthen containment around the perimeter of the blaze as a thin veil of smoke choked the air in the area. “We’re going to have crews cold trailing the perimeter of this aggressively to get it open to the public as soon as possible,” Drake said. Forest Lawn Drive was expected to stay closed between Barham Boulevard and the Ventura Freeway for another one or two days as firefighters work, according to LAFD. Firefighters were battling the blaze in an area of steep terrain. A rock tumbled down and hit one firefighter, who suffered minor injuries to his arm and leg, authorities said. “The terrain is very steep and the mop up will be a slow methodical process to eliminate hot spots and smoldering debris,”the department said on Twitter. Residents in the area can expect to see smoke and firefighting aircraft dropping water over the vegetation all day, fire officials told KTLA. “Smoke seen in the area is originating from smoldering objects inside of the containment area and is currently not a threat,” LAFD said. The cause of the fire is under investigation.