Car crash sparks Burbank brush fire that forced evacuations, police say

Firefighters battled a brush fire in the Wildwood Canyon part of Burbank, which sparked when a car crashed in the area on Saturday afternoon, according to police. 

The blaze, which has been dubbed the Walnut Fire, was first reported a little before 3:10 p.m. in the 1500 block of E. Walnut Avenue near Harvard Road, according to Cal Fire. As of 4 p.m., the fire had burned about 20 acres of brush.

Burbank city officials said that Verdugo Fire Academy crews were battling the blaze and had set up their center of operations in the Castaway Restaurant parking lot. 

"Evacuation orders are in place for DeBell Restaurant and Golf Course and Stough Canyon Nature Center," Burbank city leaders said. "Hiking trails closed until further notice."

While the fire burned, Burbank city officials said that Churches Court and Country Club Drive were under an evacuation warning. All evacuation orders and warnings have since been lifted, but city officials said the Starlight Bowl concert was canceled. Saturday's show was supposed to feature The Fab Four, a Beatles cover band. 

The fire burned approximately 40 acres and was 70% contained as Glendale firefighters said they had halted forward progress.

Video from the scene showed a burned-out car that was stopped on the side of Harvard Road near a tree.

Burbank police investigators told CBS LA that they were called to the area at around 3 p.m. for reports of a single-car crash. When they arrived, they found that all of the car's occupants had gotten out safely, but the car had caught fire. 

"The fire quickly spread from the vehicle to the adjacent hillside, prompting a response from the Burbank Fire Department and regional fire agency partners," police said.

Aerial footage showed helicopters dousing the hillside with water as they worked to mitigate the fire's spread.