Jun 20, 2009 10:24 am US/Pacific
Grass Fire Near Livermore Lab Scorches 2,000 Acres
LIVERMORE (CBS 5 / AP / BCN) ―
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Smoke rises from a grass fire burning near the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
CBS
Fire officials said a grass fire that began on Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory property and burned about 2,100 acres was fully contained late Friday night.
Alameda County fire dispatchers said the blaze was 100 percent contained as of 10 p.m.
Gordon Yano, a spokesman for the lab, said the fire was first reported about 4 p.m. Friday above Corral Hollow Road at Site 300 — an experimental test site of the lab near the Alameda-San Joaquin county line along Interstate 580.
The site is located about 15 miles east of the main lab.
From there, winds pushed the fire eastward and consumed 2,173 acres.
But Yano said no structures were threatened on the lab site, which has been used to test explosives.
There were also no reports of injuries.
Firefighters stayed in the area overnight to prevent flare-ups.
The lab declared an operational emergency when the fire borke out, meaning aid was required from outside agencies but there was no threat hazardous materials would be released.
Cal Fire used 15 fire engines, two helicopters and four airtankers fighting the flames.
The cause of the blaze was under investigation.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.)
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