Madre Fire Containment Expected Friday

The blaze sparked Tuesday and burned into the Angeles National Forest

Firefighters battling a brush fire in the San Gabriel Canyon amid high winds expected to have full containment of the blaze by Friday, officials said.

The Madre Fire sparked north of Azusa about 25 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles just before 6 p.m. Monday near Fish Canyon and Van Tassel Ridge.

Two firefighters were injured while fighting the 250-acre fire. One was grazed by a falling boulder, and another had an eye injury, said LA County Fire Dept. Inspector Keith Mora.

Evacuation orders lasted only until the first night as more than 450 firefighters made good progress on the flames. Full containment was expected for Friday, according to the US Forest Service incident page.

Smoke could be seen early Tuesday from the 210 Freeway in Azusa. The aerial attack Tuesday included a SuperScooper water dropping aircraft and SkyCrane. The first water drops were reported at about 6:30 a.m.

The blaze was 70 percent contained as of Tuesday night.

Road closures included parts of State Route 39 and Encanto Parkway in Duarte. Encanto Park was closed and being used as a staging area for water-dropping helicopters.

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