Fire Burns 800 Acres of Brush Near West Hills

WEST HILLS —  A brush fire burned more than 800 acres in Los Angeles and Ventura counties Sunday, coming within hundreds of feet of homes.

No one was injured and no property was damaged in the blaze that started about 2 p.m. in southeastern Ventura County, authorities said.

By late Sunday night, the fire was 85% contained, said Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Brian Jordan. Full containment is expected by 8 a.m. today, he said.

The fire approached homes near Victory and Valley Circle boulevards in West Hills and the nearby gated hillside community of Bell Canyon in Ventura County. As ashes fell on cars and smoke filtered into homes in both neighborhoods, residents grew more alarmed.

Joseph Mamanne saw firefighters battling flames behind his home on Wooded Vista, west of Valley Circle Boulevard. Mamanne said his wife began packing valuables and he spent the afternoon hosing down his yard, house and car, which were covered with ashes.

“It got very close very quick,” said Mamanne, 43, who was at home with his wife and three boys watching the NBA finals on TV. “My kids were a little bit panicky.”

Gary Ford, 50, said he was driving home when he saw a small glow behind his home on Victory Boulevard near Bell Canyon.

“I could hear the crackling sounds of the flames, but instead of flames, all I saw was a cloud of smoke,” said Ford as he recorded the blaze with a hand-held video camera. “I saw thicker and thicker smoke. I was waiting for the planes to appear.”

It was the San Fernando Valley’s largest brush fire this season and Ventura County’s first of the season.

The fire broke out on the site of the planned Ahmanson Ranch development west of the Los Angeles County border and moved northeast, burning mostly in Ventura County, authorities said. The area is north of the Ventura Freeway and east of Las Virgenes Road.

Dense brush that had not burned in years fed the fire, Jordan said. Winds may have helped spread the blaze and the hilly topography hampered firefighters, he said.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.

More than 500 firefighters from Los Angeles County, Ventura County, the city of Los Angeles and the California Department of Forestry fought the blaze. Five helicopters dropped water and foam on the fire and three air tankers dropped fire retardant, Jordan said.

“It gives the ground troops time to get in there and close the fire,” Jordan said of the airdrops. “This is really heavy brush, which is dangerous for firefighters.”

Staff writer Zanto Peabody, staff photographer David Bohrer and Times Community News correspondent Katie Cooper contributed to this report.