Another fire broke out in the hills above Hollywood Boulevard Wednesday, further burdening overwhelmed firefighters who are already battling multiple fires in Los Angeles.
The latest fire, near Runyon Canyon, was threatening some of the most popular Los Angeles tourist hotspots — including the iconic Hollywood sign — as firefighters battled to contain other blazes.
The Hollywood Walk of Fame, meanwhile, was bustling and the streets around the TCL Chinese Theatre and Madame Tussauds were packed with stop-and-go traffic as sirens blared and low-flying helicopters flew overhead to dump water on the flames, which were only about a mile away. People toting suitcases left hotels while some onlookers walked toward the flames, recording the fire on their phones.
Within a few hours firefighters had made major progress. Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Erik Scott said they were able to keep the fire in check because “we hit it hard and fast and mother nature was a little nicer to us today than she was yesterday.”
The latest fire comes as firefighters in Los Angeles and neighboring communities are battling the Palisades Fire, the Hurst Fire, the Lidia Fire, and the Eaton Fire, the latter of which, has claimed the lives of five people. At least 130,000 people were under evacuation orders.
Speaking to Fox News on Wednesday, Los Angeles Fire Department captain Sheila Kelliher described the scorched hillsides, “dramatic and apocalyptic.”
Kelliher said she wached winds “whip up to 70, 80, even 100 miles an hour,” further fanning the flames.”
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