Three men were arrested Thursday in connection with a 1,700-acre brush fire in Glendora that destroyed at least two structures and prompted mandatory evacuations, according to Glendora police. The Los Angeles County Fire Department was battling the three-alarm fire, which was first reported at 5:50 a.m. in the foothills of the Angeles National Forest. Approximately 550 personnel including 16 strike teams, more than 100 engines, eight fixed wing aircrafts and eight helicopters were on scene, with the assistance of Cal Fire. “We’re fighting this fire extremely aggressively both on the ground and in the air,” LA County Fire inspector Scott Miller said. Mandatory evacuations were in effect north of Sierra Madre Avenue, east of Glendora Mountain Road and west of Highway 39. There were hard road closures in effect for Sierra Madre Ave. between Loraine Ave. and Highway 39.
Citrus College and five Glendora Unified School Districts schools: Cullen Elementary, Cellers Elementary, Sandburg Middle School, La Fetra Elementary and Goddard Middle School, were closed for the day, according to officials. Other schools in the district remained in session, but students were being kept indoors. Goddard Middle School, 859 E. Sierra Madre Ave., and Legion Hall, 159 N. Cullen Ave., were being used as evacuation centers. Pasadena Humane Society, located at 361 S. Raymond Ave., in Pasadena and the Inland Valley Human Center, 859 E. Sierra Madre Ave., set up animal shelters for evacuated pets. The Pomona Fairplex was available for large evacuated animals, including horses, at Gate 12.
