LOS ANGELES (KCAL/KCBS/CNN) - A brush fire has forced hundreds in California to leave their homes.
About 200 homes were evacuated Friday night, after the fire broke out near Los Angeles.
The fire department said the La Tuna fire has burned 2,000 acres in the La Tuna Canyon Park area of the Verdugo Mountains.
Flames sent massive plumes of smokes into the air and caused an interstate highway to shut down.
As of right now, officials say the fire is only ten percent contained.
An updated photo from my front porch. Lots of choppers overhead and fire trucks passing through my street. #LaTunaFire @myburbanknews pic.twitter.com/kF32rIDxdZ
— alee-a (@aleealindsey) September 2, 2017
Fire crews have been watching homes all day, as Dr. Martha Rivera said the La Tuna fire got more intense after sunset.
"It's getting a little intense and it's getting a little closer. The winds are changing, and there's more winds coming out now. It's getting a little scarier now," Dr. Rivera said.
Earlier in the evening, LAPD officers got on their loud speakers to announce a voluntary evacuation alert, but most decided to stay put.
Throughout the day, a team of aircraft-made precision water dropped, which resident Jim Gilmore believed made a huge difference.
"The fire department has done an awesome job of actually taking care of us," Gilmore said.
People in the hills of said that it's been hard watching the flames inch closer and closer to their neighbors' homes.
"I've been saying prayers for them. I mean how nerve racking. We've got so much wildlife up here. We've got cougars, we've got bobcats," neighbor Sherri Patten said.
Throughout the day, weather conditions were erratic. Homeowners said they've noticed the winds shifting countless times.
Dr. Rivera said that she has a box of important documents ready to go and she's willing to leave her home behind if things get too dicey.
"It's just stuff. Our safety, our lives and our animals, that's more important."
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