A FIRE broke out in the hills above Los Angeles today, not far from the famed Hollywood sign, forcing evacuation of the city's largest park and zoo and snarling traffic on a major freeway.
The fire, which authorities say may have been arson, was fanned by high temperatures and hot winds.
The blaze was centred in hilly Griffith Park, home of the Griffith Observatory, where scenes from James Dean classic movie Rebel Without a Cause were filmed in the 1950s.
Authorities evacuated people from the park, adjacent golf courses, a museum and the Los Angeles Zoo, which had a total of nearly 1300 visitors on Tuesday. There were no reports of injury.
Our public safety officers went through the zoo and told everybody we were evacuating and obviously they were able to see the fire so they were happy to oblige, Zoo spokesman Jason Jacobs said.
Mr Jacobs said much of the zoo's staff was sent home but that the animals, animal care staff and veterinarians stayed behind.
The animal care staff is keeping an eye on the fire and on reports from the fire department and will take action if need be, he said.
Fire officials said arson investigators were questioning an unidentified male who was seen walking out of the brush near the fire.
That person was taken to hospital with injuries suffered in the fire but had not been named a suspect.
Some 160 firefighters, assisted by water-dropping aircraft, attacked the flames as thick black smoke billowed over much of Los Angeles and snarled traffic on the Hollywood Freeway, a major artery in and out of the city.
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