A semi-truck caught fire on Interstate 5 north of Castaic on Monday and sparked a blaze in the adjacent brush, leading to lane closures and lengthy rush hour delays.
Fire crews with the Angeles National Forest responded to the incident, dubbed the Martin fire, around 4:15 p.m. on the northbound I-5 near Templin Highway.
Several northbound lanes of I-5 were closed north of Templin Highway as fire vehicles staged on the highway and multiple firefighting helicopters performed water drops from above, according to social media posts from the Angeles National Forest.
An evacuation warning was temporarily issued for the residents living in the 133 homes at the Paradise Ranch Estates Mobile Home Park. The Los Angeles County Fire Department staged fire trucks at the park as a precautionary measure.
By 6:20 p.m. crews had reached 46% containment on the 25-acre blaze, enabling the release of some aerial resources, according to the Angeles National Forest. Lane closures remained in effect, snarling traffic for several miles as rush hour intensified.
The California Highway Patrol issued a Sig Alert, warning drivers to expect delays of more than two hours as the two to four northbound lanes will be blocked until further notice. At 7 p.m. the evacuation warning was lifted and an additional highway lane reopened as crews continued to make progress combating the fire.
Aerial video captured by ABC7 showed smoke rising from a smoldering truck as a long line of cars extended south of the incident.
Meanwhile, a brush fire in Montecito Heights burned about two acres, prompting a shelter-in-place order from the Los Angeles Fire Department that was lifted shortly before 6 p.m.
And farther south in Camp Pendleton, crews battled to gain control of a 919-acre brush fire that ignited on the Marine Corps base shortly before 3 p.m., prompting a smoke advisory and the evacuation of some military personnel.
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