An emergency has been declared in Los Angeles when a forest fire was burning in Griffith Park, near the Hollywood iconic sign.

Griffith Observatory was evacuated and park rangers prevent tourists from venturing into nearby trails.

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A fire broke out shortly before 3 p.m. in Quarter 2600 on North Nottingham Avenue.

The video from the scene shows a large cloud of smoke as crews work to fight the flames.

Helicopters in the area are dumping water to put out the fire.

The Los Angeles Fire Department has estimated that 50 to 100 feet of vegetation is on fire.

In a statement from LAFD, the fire grew to about four acres.

As firefighters continue to attack from the ground and from the air, the response is now classified as a “Great Emergency”.

“The Griffith Observatory has now been evacuated, and Rangers Park is helping public safety by not allowing tourists to venture out on nearby trails. No houses were evacuated. “

The Griffith Observatory has been a staple in California for many years, opening to the public in 1935.

It became a landmark in 1976 and celebrated its 85th anniversary in 2020.

Nearby Griffith Park was the site of one of the deadliest forest fires in state history.

On October 3, 1933, workers took care of other facilities in the park when they were sent to put out garbage.

However, the workers were not trained in firefighting and therefore could not contain the flames.

The fire eventually spread to nearly 50 acres and was blown away by winds that eventually engulfed them. Twenty-nine people died.

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