A brush fire outside Los Angeles was threatening thousands of homes and has prompted mandatory evacuation of local residents, authorities said Saturday.
The 200-acre brush fire in Calabasas, a small Los Angeles County city some 10 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean and about halfway between the Malibu and Santa Monica, was reportedly triggered when a vehicle hit a utility pole, downing power lines.
Several homes were damaged, and mandatory evacuations were ordered for some Calabasas residents as about 250 firefighters battled to contain the blaze, fire officials said. Helicopters and air tankers also were brought in to make water drops.
CNN quoted Calabasas City Manager Tony Coroalles as saying that 3,000 homes, or about 5,000 people, had been evacuated.