Crews are fighting a brush fire in the Wildwood Canyon part of Burbank Saturday afternoon that has led to evacuation orders and warnings. The wildfire is close to multiple expensive homes near Country Club Drive.
Dubbed the Walnut Fire, the blaze was first reported before 3:10 p.m. in the 1500 block of E. Walnut Avenue closed to Harvard Road. There are some unconfirmed reports that it was started when a vehicle hit a tree.
As of 4 p.m., CalFire reported that the fire had burned 20 acres of brush.
Footage of the area shows large flames rising from the hillside. There were also at least two helicopters in the air helping firefighters as nearby residents watched nervously and fire engines were on standby in the neighborhood, according to the City News Service.
“Evacuation orders are in place for DeBell Restaurant and Golf Course and Stough Canyon Nature Center, Burbank officials said in a post on X. “Hiking trails closed until further notice.”
An employee at the Castaway restaurant on Harvard Road told City News Service they were not ordered or warned to evacuate, but to shelter in place.
The Burbank Police Department and Burbank Fire Department responded to the fire around 3:20 p.m. The city said it was also receiving help from other fire departments in the area.
Verdugo Fire Academy crews are actively trying to put out the fire and have set up their center of operations in the Castaway Restaurant parking lot, according to Burbank officials.
The Starlight Bowl concert which as was scheduled for today has been canceled.
