Vegetation Fire Sparked by Welding operatoin

On Tuesday October 17, 2017 at 11:22 a.m. La Habra Heights Firefighters responded to the 1800 block of Subtropic Dr. on a reported unknown type of fire. On arrival Firefighters discovered a small fire in a in an outdoor vegetation trellis. The majority of fire was extinguished prior to the arrival of Firefighters.

Photo by Rick McClure

Firefighters continued extinguishing the flames and overhauled the area to extinguish any remaining hot spots. flying embers did start a small patch of weeds on fire approximately 75' away. The fire was contained to about 25' of trellis.

The cause of the fire was determined to be due to a welding operation on the overhead trellis.

Auto Fire Extinguished on Encanada Dr. in La Habra Heights

On October 11, 2017 La Habra Heights Firefighters responded to a reported auto fire in the 600 block of Encanada Dr. in La Habra Heights. Upon arrival, Firefighters found a four door sedan with the engine compartment fully involved in fire.



Photos by Nathan Holguin

 

Firefighters conducted an aggressive attack on the fire preventing it from spreading into the surrounding brush.The cause of the fire is listed as electrical. There were no injuries reported.

 

Possible Fireworks Spark 2 Acre Brush Fire in La Habra Heights

On July 4th, 2017, at 10 p.m. Los Angeles County and La Habra Heights Firefighters were dispatched to a reported brush fire near Fullerton Rd and Harbor Blvd just South of Pathfinder Rd in Rowland Heights.
Upon Arrival, Firefighters found a brush fire, burning uphill in heavy brush, on the east side of the 2200 block of Fullerton Rd. in La Habra Heights.  Several structures on Oak Ranch Rd were immediately threatened by the approaching fire.

Approximately 150 Los Angeles County and La Habra Heights Firefighters aided by water dropping helicopters conducted a coordinated, aggressive attack on the fire and were able to contain the fire to approximately 2 acres. Firefighters remained on the scene throughout the night, extinguishing flare ups and hot spots.

Firefighters spent the majority of July 5th in near 100 degree heat overhauling the entire fire area to completely extinguish any remaining fire and embers. No structures were damaged and no injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation, however illegal fireworks have not been ruled out.

Tree Takes Down Wires and Power Poles Sparking Grass Fire in La Habra Heights

On June 20, 2017 La Habra Heights Firefighters responded to a reported grass fire with electrical wires down in the 300 block of East Rd. Upon arrival, Firefighters found a large tree that had fallen across the road landing on power lines and communication cables.

The weight of the tree snapped 2 power poles, brought down power and communications cables, and caused a small grass fire on the east side of the road

Firefighters quickly knocked down the fire and contained it to a 50' X 50' area of recently cleared dried grass. A private contractor removed the tree and So. Cal. Edison replace several power poles to restore power to the area. East Rd. remained closed until late into the night.

Fire Causes Major Damage to Home in La Habra Heights

On May 7th, 2017 at 12:35 p.m.  La Habra Heights  Firefighters supported by Firefighters from Los Angeles County Fire, Vernon, and Santa Fe Springs were dispatched to a reported structure fire on Dorothea Rd. in La Habra Heights. 

Upon E771’s arrival, firefighters discovered heavy smoke showing from the property and immediately laid a supply line from a nearby fire hydrant. Heavy smoke and fire was visible through the first and second story roof of a 5000 sq. ft. 2-story home. Firefighters made entry through the front door to discover heavy smoke on the first floor. As the firefighters progressed up the stairway they encountered near zero visibility and discovered fire showing in one room to the right of the stairs.

 The Firefighters observed that the fire had burned through the floor from the single story attic portion of the rear section of the house.

The attic of both the one story portion of the home and the second story portion were fully involved in fire.

During the firefight, while firefighters were inside the structure, there were two partial roof collapses. The Incident Commander accounted for all firefighters and ordered firefighting operations into a defensive mode.

 

It took 50 Firefighters 90 minutes to get a knockdown on the fire. Firefighters spent the next 5 hours overhauling the structure and extinguishing all of the hot spots. Due to the extensive damage to the roof, the entire roof and tiles had to be removed. The fire was confined to the both attic's and one room causing extensive damage to the roof structure. There were no injuries and all companies were released from the fire. La Habra Heights Firefighters remained on scene throughout the night to extinguish any hot spot and prevent a rekindle.

The cause is under investigation by LASD Arson Detectives, however the preliminary finding indicates a possible electrical issue in the 1^st floor attic and there is no indication of arson.

 

Small Brush Fire Contained in La Habra Heights

On June 2, 2017 La Habra Heights Firefighters and the Los Angeles County Fire Department responded to a reported brush fire on Hacienda Rd. just South of Skyline Rd. in La Habra Heights. Firefighters discovered two small spot fires burning uphill in light brush. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire and contained them to an area of approximately 100' X 100'.



Firefighters were able to quickly contain the fire due to the property owner having recently cleared the dried grass and brush on the steep hillside. The cause of the fire was undetermined.

The La Habra Heights Fire Department recently transitioned to the Los Angeles County Fire Department Dispatch Center for processing 911 calls and dispatching La Habra Heights fire and EMS resources. This transition has reduced response times and improved the communication and coordination of local fire companies when working together.

Both agencies continue to work together to improve public safety in the communities of La Habra Heights, La Habra, Whittier, and Hacienda Heights through our automatic and mutual aide agreements.

2017 Multi-Agency Wildland Fire Training in La Habra Heights

On May 23rd, 24th, 25th, and 26th  of 2017, The La Habra Heights Fire Department hosted the 2017 Multi-Agency wildland fire training in La Habra Heights. The topography of La Habra Heights with heavy brush and intermix of homes makes it ideal for local Firefighters t gain valuable training for wildfires. 

Over the course of four days, over 250 local Firefighters from La Habra Heights, Los Angeles County Fire Department, Brea, Fullerton, Compton, Vernon, Downey, and Santa Fe Springs received valuable classroom as well as field training from experts in Wildland Firefighting. 

Over 40 Engine Companies and more than a dozen Chief Officers from these agencies practiced firefighting operations together, many for the first time.

Most of those attending had never driven through the Heights or been exposed to the difficulties of fighting a wildfire in La Habra Heights.
Chief Officers and Captains who will be tasked with working together to command wildfires had an opportunity to discuss Incident Command, radio communications, and agency challenges. Having Command Staff from different agencies develop relationships before the battle starts improves the operation success during the firefight.

This training improves our preparedness, interoperability and communications that will be used to successfully mitigate emergencies and save lives and property. Coordinating dozens of Fire companies from multiple jurisdictions is complex and challenging.

These drills provide not only the ground based Firefighters an opportunity to practice their firefighting operations, it also provides an opportunity for Air Operations and the Command Staff from different Departments to work together.