Firefighters managed 60% containment on the Elsmere Fire in Newhall as of Wednesday morning, while Caltrans worked to repair guardrails that burned.
The blaze, which began Monday afternoon, grew to 160 acres by Wednesday, as firefighters continued to work toward building containment lines — though no structures were damaged or destroyed, according to Los Angeles County Fire Department Supervisor Franklin Lopez.
After a hard closure of Highway 14 and parts of Interstate 5 Monday, Caltrans officials said Wednesday only the right-hand lane of southbound Highway 14 remained closed from Placerita Canyon Road to Newhall Avenue for guardrail repair, along with the Placerita Canyon Road on and off ramps in both directions. This caused slight traffic delays on southbound Highway 14 for commuters Wednesday morning.
Firefighters first responded to reports of a brush fire at the Elsmere Canyon hiking trail, near northbound Highway 14, around 1:30 p.m. Monday, followed by a brief evacuation of hundreds of residents in the nearby area before firefighters got a handle on the blaze.
