Zoo closes as Griffith Park fire is extinguished

Some animals evacuated as crews focus on hot spots

The lemurs were among the first animals to be evacuated. So were the bird-show animals.

Put in cages with other small species, the animals were just the latest Californians whose lives were disrupted by a season — in fact, a year — of fire.

Los Angeles Zoo officials closed the facility for the day Friday as a fire burned in Griffith Park.

Officials said early indications were that smoke from the fire did not cause health issues for the animals, but the staff was continuing to monitor conditions. To the north and west, the monstrous plume of smoke from destructive fires in Ventura and L.A. counties towered into the sky.

In addition to preparing animals for evacuation, zoo workers hosed down hillside areas most vulnerable to flames. Staffers said they could see the fire from their offices, but they did not evacuate.

The fire, which sent plumes of smoke into the air as heavy brush burned, was spotted just before 8 a.m. near fire roads, hiking trails and a landfill in a remote section of Griffith Park, a challenge for crews trying to access the area, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Peter Sanders.

By late morning, the fire behind the zoo had been all but extinguished, with all visible flames put out, department officials said. Crews shifted to snuffing out smoldering patches of brush and chopping down weakened trees and branches. Two helicopters continued to orbit the area.

One firefighter was injured and taken to a hospital, but officials said he was not burned.

With little wind to complicate their efforts, firefighters spent much of the morning putting out smoldering hot spots outside the zoo. The landscape was charred black and gray.

Within an hour of the fire first being spotted, several city, county and privately contracted water-dropping helicopters were orbiting the park trying to knock down

the flames.

As of about 9:30 a.m., the blaze had charred about 30 acres, Sanders said.

Though the fire produced thick smoke visible across a wide area, it had not threatened any structures, Sanders said.

Fire Department Capt. Alfred Leon and his crew were taking a break from digging containment lines when the brush behind their trucks started to crackle and smoke.

“Hey Cap, we got somethin’ working back here!” a firefighter yelled.

Leon and his crew circled the dusty ridge and climbed on top, where they began blasting water into the brush.

Friday’s fire was as routine as could be given the location, Leon said, but “you’re surrounded by a major metropolitan city, lots of brush, wildlife and tough terrain. It’s absolutely challenging.”

It was, however, a relatively merciful blaze in a year of smoke and flames, lost homes and lives.

Francine Orr Los Angeles Times KRISTIAN LITZ of the L.A. County Fire Department helps extinguish a brush fire that was spotted early Friday in Griffith Park. Aided by a lack of wind, fire crews had put out most visible flames by late morning.

Joseph Serna Los Angeles Times THE L.A. ZOO evacuated birds and other small animals on Friday to protect them from smoke.

Joseph Serna Los Angeles Times L.A. ZOO STAFF move some small animals after a brush fire was spotted in nearby Griffith Park on Friday. Officials say smoke did not appear to have hurt the animals, but their health will continue to be monitored.