Weed Whacker Sparks Fire in Ritzy Part of Los Angeles

5 homes evacuated in Brentwood
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted May 29, 2017 5:04 PM CDT
Weed Whacker Sparks 30-Acre Brush Fire
This still photo from video provided by KNBC-TV shows a home that has escaped damage as flames burned past it above Mandeville Canyon Road in the Brentwood area of Los Angeles, Sunday, May 28, 2017.   (Uncredited)

More than 150 firefighters battled a 30-acre brush fire on a Los Angeles hillside on Sunday that investigators said was sparked by a weed whacker, the AP reports. The fire, which triggered the evacuation of five homes, broke out on a steep chaparral-covered hillside of Mandeville Canyon above Brentwood and sent up a plume of smoke that was visible for miles. Firefighters aided by water-dropping aircraft were able to contain 70% of the fire by late afternoon. A private company working on Mandeville Canyon Road had been using the weed whacker to clear brush around homes when its muffler overheated, said Battalion Chief Mike Castillo, supervisor for the LAFD's arson unit.

The five mile dead-end road through the canyon is home to some of Los Angeles' wealthiest residents and leads to side roads where the likes of former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady have owned mansions. (More strange stuff stories.)

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