Hollywood Hills Fire Photos And Video Show Smoke Billowing After Apparent Explosion

A fire was raging Tuesday afternoon in the southern California's Hollywood Hills after an explosion located not far from the famous Hollywood sign in Los Angeles that marks the territory for the global capital of the motion picture industry.

It was not immediately clear what caused the massive blaze, but photos show what appear to be heavy plumes of smoke billowing above the rolling hills where many celebrities call home.

The blaze was being characterized as a brush fire in an area called the Cahuenga Pass, local news outlet KTLA reported. The Los Angeles Fire Department was responding to the fire on a "west-facing slope heading into moderate brush," according to KTLA.

The Los Angeles Fire Department told the Los Angeles Times that more than 100 firefighters were on the scene located near the 101 Freeway. No residences were under threat from the fire, but several power lines were downed. The afternoon commute was expected to be affected significantly.

The number of firefighters on the scene were soon doubled to more than 200 in an effort to battle the blaze from all angles, including on the ground and by air, the local ABC affilliate KABC reported.

Shortly after the fire broke out around 3:05 p.m. local time, the Los Angeles Fire Department issued an alert for the blaze, indicating that the department had deployed a helicopter there to survey the damage.

The fire follows a two-alarm fire last month at a recycling plant in Hollywood. In that instance, no firefighters were hurt after they quickly extinguished the blaze.

This is a developing story.