LOS ANGELES _ A brush fire in the Verdugo Mountains north of downtown Los Angeles has burned more than 5,000 acres, making it one of the largest fires in the city's history and one that officials warn could grow larger if erratic weather continues.
Hundreds of firefighters battled the fire overnight and into the morning, and at one point, flames spread in four directions in intense heat and wild winds. One home as burned, but no injuries were reported, officials said Saturday.
Those firefighters will face another day of triple-digit heat in inland areas of Southern California as a heat wave that has gripped the state continues. The National Weather Service said temperatures could reach 110 to115 degrees in the hottest areas, and hillside areas could experience more of the shifting winds that helped fuel what has been dubbed the La Tuna fire.
"Our priority is saving people and saving property," Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas said at a news conference in Lake View Terrace, where he was joined by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.
"There is a lot of unburned fuel" in this area, Terrazas warned, noting that the last fire in the area was at least 30 years ago.
Terrazas and Garcetti said the La Tuna fire was the largest in the city's history in terms of acreage.
"We can't recall anything larger," Terrazas said.
"Our biggest concern is the wind and weather," Terrazas said. "The erratic weather is our No. 1 challenge. If there's no wind, this is a relatively easy fire to put out. But when the wind changes, it changes our priorities because other properties become at risk."
The fire was 10 percent contained Saturday morning, officials said. Winds were blowing between 10 and 15 mph, with humidity at 10 to 15 percent.
The combination of dry brush, high heat, low humidity and shifting winds make it possible for the fire to spread, officials said.
"We are worried about the fire hooking southeast into Glendale and working its way up into Whiting Woods area," Garcetti said.
Late Saturday morning, the city of Glendale announced voluntary emergency evacuations in the Glenwood Oaks and Mountain Oaks neighborhoods. Residents in the city's Whiting Woods neighborhood also were told to be prepared to leave.
Chris Hall, 37, was spraying his roof with a water hose Saturday morning when two police officers pulled up to his driveway on McGroarty Street in Tujunga.
"Now it's mandatory," they told him. "Get your stuff and go."
Hall said he wanted to stay but didn't argue.
They gave him 20 minutes to pack, but Hall said he was already prepared. The night before, he organized his photos_those of his daughter's birth, birthdays and visits to the zoo_and important documents, filling them in the trunk of his Nissan Sentra.
"Everything else can be replaced," he said, sitting behind the wheel of his car about to flee.
Earlier that morning, after seeing flames creep up behind a nearby art center, he dropped his 5-year-old daughter and 12-year-old stepson, along with their pet hamster, at a friend's home. He left their goldfish behind.
Over the last couple weeks, as wildfires raged across California, he spent hours tree trimming and weed-whacking in case a fire erupted nearby.
"We did a lot of cleaning," he said.
When winds pushed a band of flames over the canyon ridgeline Friday night, authorities ordered those living in the Brace Canyon Park area and Castleman Estates to "leave immediately" and head to evacuation shelters, according to an alert issued by the fire department. The Stough Canyon Nature Center also is under evacuation order.
The overall evacuation order affects hundreds of homes.
The fire was burning on multiple fronts southwest of the 210 Freeway, which remained closed Saturday morning between the Glendale Freeway and Sunland Boulevard. It was not known when the freeway would be reopened.
Officials warned of poor air quality throughout the region. Burbank police officers wore respiratory masks early Saturday and urged residents to stay indoors and avoid outside activities because of the heavy smoke.
Residents in smoke-impacted areas were advised to keep windows and doors closed and avoid vigorous activities, both indoors and outdoors.
The heat wave battering most of California has intermittently knocked out power to thousands and helped fuel more than a dozen wildfires. Downtown San Francisco set a record high of 106 degrees Friday. The old record was 103.
Fires this week in Northern California burned homes and forced numerous evacuations.
