A brush fire ignited at Runyon Canyon was quickly contained Sunday, thanks to the swift response from a group of hikers who managed to confront and detain the suspected arsonist. Davanh Dimarco and Scott Mitchell, who were hiking at the time, saw the man fleeing the scene and took immediate action.
According to ABC7, the Los Angeles Fire Department dispatched approximately 53 firefighters to tackle the fire, which originally started with a single palm tree but spread to a quarter-acre. Air resources were called in to support the efforts, and the flames were rapidly extinguished.
During the incident, Dimarco used her phone to capture footage of the man as he seemingly admitted to the crime when confronted by a woman asking if he had lit the fire, to which he reportedly responded, "I did. You're right," as shown in the video.
"He admitted he did it," Dimarco said in an interview with FOX LA. The hikers' quick thinking played a critical role in preventing the do escalate situation. The suspect, who was detained for over an hour by Mitchell and another hiker, made bizarre claims during the confrontation, like being a fire marshal conducting a controlled burn despite not having any identification to prove it.
Scott Mitchell, a former football player, used both assertiveness and humor to keep the situation under control until police arrived. "I just wanted to keep it light and tell him I wasn’t playing with him, so I told him, ‘I’m Batman from Gotham City, I don’t want to hear you talk anymore,'" Mitchell recounted to FOX LA. The alleged arsonist's identity and criminal history have yet to be disclosed by authorities.
The fire was near the site of the January Sunset Wildfire, a reminder of the devastation caused by such incidents. Fashion designer Davanh DiMarco, who was present during the arrest, described their reaction as "PTSD from January," according to CBS News Los Angeles. The suspect has not been charged as of the latest reports.
