Emigrant fire erupts near Castaic, forcing closures on Interstate 5

Matt Hamilton
·1 min read

A wildfire broke out Friday afternoon along Interstate 5 near Castaic, forcing the closure of some lanes ahead of the rush-hour commute.

The Emigrant fire was reported just after 1:30 p.m. near Pyramid Lake and was caused by a semitruck on the northbound side that caught fire and the flames spread to adjacent brush, according to Andrew Mitchell, spokesman for the Angeles National Forest.

Two northbound lanes south of Vista Del Lago Road were closed. The offramps at Vista Del Lago Road were also closed to motorists, according to the California Department of Transportation.

In less than two hours, the blaze had burned more than 180 acres and was rapidly spreading north, Mitchell said.

"It's moving pretty good," he added. More than 100 firefighters from Angeles National Forest had responded, and an unspecified number of firefighters from Los Angeles County Fire Department were joining them, Mitchell said.

The fire is named after Emigrant Landing, a boating facility at Pyramid Lake.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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