High winds Tuesday evening fueled a fast-moving brush fire in the Altadena/Pasadena area that was burning 600 acres just before midnight
The Eaton fire was reported at 6:23 p.m., near Altadena Drive and Midwick Drive in the Eaton Canyon area, according to Cal Fire.
The Angeles National Forest said on X the fire had reached more than 200 acres by 7:12 p.m. with evacuations underway. It later grew to an estimated 600 acres.
Evacuations were ordered for residents in the area of Sierra Madre Boulevard from Altadena Drive to New York Drive and north of New York Drive.
Evacuation orders also extended into Sierra Madre for residents west of West Grove Street, north of Grand View Avenue, south of Skyland Drive and east of North Baldwin Avenue, Oakcrest Drive, Park Vista Drive, Stonehouse Road and Liliano Drive.
Residents of Arcadia are also ordered to evacuate if they live north of West Orange Grove Avenue, south of Monte Place, west of Santa Anita Avenue and east of Hermit Falls, East Grand View Avenue and Santa Anita Avenue.
Residents can evacuate to Westwood Recreation Center at 1350 Sepulveda Blvd or the Pasadena Convention Center at 300 E. Green St. Those with small animals can bring them to Agoura Animal Care Center at 29525 Agoura Road in Agoura Hills, and large animals can be brought to evacuation centers L.A. Equestrian Center, 480 Riverside Dr. in Burbank, or Pierce College Equestrian Center, 6201 Winnetka Ave. in Woodland Hills.
All Saints Church in Pasadena, at 132 N. Euclid Ave., is also sheltering individuals affected by the Eaton Canyon fire.
Homes were burning in the 2600 block of Dove Creek Lane and 2200 block of Pinecrest Lane in Altadena, according to footage from Key News Network.
CBS Los Angeles reported one or more senior care centers were being evacuated.
Footage from the scene appeared to show nurses, firefighters, paramedics and others rushing hundreds of patients, some still in hospital beds, from The Terraces at Park Marino in Pasadena. City buses arrived to move the patients to safety.
#EatonFire Mandatory Evacuations – LEAVE NOW
E/Altadena Dr
Kinneloa Cyn Rd
Outpost lane
Glen Springs
Coolidge
Miranda
Roosevelt
Veranda
Kenclare@PasadenaFD @LASDHQ @PasadenaPD @PasadenaGov @LACOFD pic.twitter.com/bSFjc2wZmH— Angeles National Forest (@Angeles_NF) January 8, 2025
#EatonFire. Addl MANDATORY Evacuations
Foxridge
Canyon Close
Grand Oak@PasadenaFD @@LACoFDPIO @LASDHQ @PasadenaGov— Angeles National Forest (@Angeles_NF) January 8, 2025
The fire broke out as regional fire resources were already stretched thin by the 2,920-acre Palisades fire.
A windstorm hitting the area Tuesday generated gusts of up to 84 mph in the San Gabriel Mountains, increasing fire dangers in the region already dried out by a lack of precipitation.
School was canceled for all Pasadena Unified School District students Wednesday, Jan. 8, as the fire continues to grow. The city is deciding whether to declare a state of emergency because of the impacts of the fire, the school district said.
Similarly, all Arcadia Unified schools will be closed Wednesday because of extreme winds and potential fire hazards, the district said. Similar closures were announced around the region because of the Eaton and Palisades fires.
City News Service contributed to this story.
