SIERRA MADRE – Authorities are pooling resources for residents affected by the Chantry Flats Fire.
Several area hotels are offering discounted room rates for discplaced fire victims and the city has set up a hotline for residents to call for more information.
AGENCY: City of Sierra Madre
PHONE: (626) 355-1735 and press “0” for the operator
RESOURCE: Up to date information about Chantry Flats Fire and other resources
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AGENCY: The American Red Cross
PHONE: (626) 799-0841, ext. 270
RESOURCE: Information about the Hart Park House and Congregational Chruch evacuation centers for displaced residents
ADDRESS: Hart Park House: 222 W. Sierra Madre Blvd. in Sierra Madre
Congregational Church: 170 W. Sierra Madre Blvd. in Sierra Madre
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AGENCY: The Pasadena Humane Society
PHONE: (626) 792-3810
RESOURCE: Offering shelter services for pets displaced by the fire
ADRESS: 361 S. Raymond Ave. in Pasadena
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AGENCY: Courtyard Marriot
PHONE: (626) 357-5211
RESOURCE: Discounted room rates for residents displaced by the fire
ADDRESS: 700 W. Huntington Drive in Monrovia
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AGENCY: Santa Anita Inn
PHONE: (626) 446-5211
RESOURCE: Discounted room rates for residents displaced by the fire
ADDRESS: 130 W. Huntington Drive in Arcadia
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AGENCY: Motel 6
PHONE: (626) 446-2660
RESOURCE: Discounted room rates for residents displaced by the fire
ADDRESS: 225 Colorado St. Arcadia
The city is posting information on its Web site here
For more information you can call (626) 355-7135. Press 0 for operator. There is updated information about evacuations and evacuation centers around town
An airplane drops flame retardant on a slope Sunday, April 27, 2008, in Sierra Madre, Calif. Awildfirethat broke out in a popular hiking area blackened the steep slopes of foothills outside Los Angeles and led to evacuation orders for residents of about 550 homes, authorities said Sunday. (AP Photo/Ric Francis)
SGVN has added a breaking news link that rounds up all the updates on the Sierra Madre wildfire. You can check it out here.
Reporter Caroline An interviewed Cheryl Parker, a 37-year resident of Sierra Madre, about her experiences after being evacuated from her home on Foothill Avenue.
Evacuations have grown locally, as the fire spreads into areas that haven’t burned in more than 40 years. As many as 400 firefighters are attacking the 300-acre blaze at this hour Hundreds have been told to flee. Here’s the latest:
SIERRA MADRE, Calif. (AP) _ A wildfire that broke out in a popular hiking area blackened the steep slopes of foothills outside Los Angeles and led to evacuation orders for residents of about 550 homes, authorities said Sunday.
Hundreds of people around Sierra Madre were told to flee Saturday night and Sunday as the wildfire continued to burn through dense brush, said Elisa Weaver of the Arcadia Fire Department.
Sierra Madre is about 15 miles northeast of Los Angeles and just east of Pasadena.
No homes were damaged, though a small outbuilding was destroyed, Weaver said.
More than 400 firefighters were attacking the 350-acre fire, aided by two helicopters with two water-dropping air tankers on the way. The fire was little contained and was expected to burn for another two or three days.
“This is pretty serious,” Weaver said. “Some of these areas have not burned in over 40 years.”
The cause of the blaze remained under investigation. It was first reported Saturday afternoon in a wooded area a few miles northeast of Pasadena. It was windy at the time and unseasonably hot, with temperatures approaching 100 degrees.
The flames also brought the evacuation of a Boy Scout camp Saturday and left about 100 hikers stranded in a parking lot near Chantry Flats. Most of the Scouts had already left the camp by the time the evacuation was ordered, Weaver said, and no injuries were reported.
Firefighters originally had hoped to have the blaze contained Sunday, but gusting winds late Saturday night kept the fire burning out of control and creeping toward nearby homes. The evacuation orders came shortly before 11 p.m. Two shelters have been set up for evacuees.
Flames outlined steep ridges about a mile above Sierra Madre, a San Gabriel Mountains foothill community of about 11,000 popular with artists.
AP FIRE VIDEO | Here’s video from the AP Click the link to watch. I’l be posting more video and photo throughout the day. We have a pretty full crew taking care of coverage.
PETS TO BE SHELTERED: FROM PSN:
PASADENA – The Pasadena Humane Society is offering shelter for pets whose owners have been evacuated from their homes due to the ongoing fire in the foothills.
The organization has cleared out its board room and other spaces to make room for the animals, which number about 30 at this point, Pasadena Humane Society spokeswoman Ricky Whitman said.
The pets were picked up beginning at 2:30 a.m. Sunday from American Red Cross shelters in Sierra Madre.
For more information, contact officials at the Red Cross shelters at Hart Park House, 222 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., and the Congregational Church 170 W. Sierra Madre Blvd. Red Cross officials will coordinate with the Humane Society to ensure pet owners find shelter for their animals.
Another local blog link: The sky is big in Pasadena. Photos here.