The Mountain Fire continues to burn through the foothills and mountains between Camarillo and Santa Paula, burning dozens of homes.
As of Thursday morning, 14,187 acres have been burned with zero percent containment, according to Ventura County Emergency. By midday, it was close to 20,000 acres - more than 30 square miles.
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“Gusty northeast winds can be expected with sustained speeds ranging from 30mph-55mph. Gusts as high as 100mph are possible in wind-prone mountainous locations,” officials wrote. “In addition to windy conditions, low relative humidity with poor overnight recovery is expected. A Red Flag Warning has been issued starting Wednesday at 4am through Thursday at 6pm for all areas of Ventura County.”
Capt. Thomas Shoots with CAL FIRE/San Diego told KNX News’ Jon Baird a lot of homes are still threatened by the fire.
“The challenge is even when the flames died down, all it takes is that wind, pushing ember into a next receptive fuel bed and really driving that fire forward again,” he said.
Evacuation orders were issued in multiple areas, including West Camarillo, Unincorporated Somis, and Saticoy Country Club. For the full list of evacuation orders, click here. The map for evacuation areas can be found here.
Capt. Shoots described to Baird what he saw as people evacuated from the area.
“Folks literally jumping into sheriff's vehicles, jumping into fire vehicles just trying to get them out of their homes. Very dicey yesterday,” he said. “ A lot of close calls and we're grateful that so far nothing significant as far as any civilian or firefighter injuries.”
It’s unclear exactly how many homes were damaged in the fire, but Baird reported that it could be as many as 75.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday afternoon that the state had secured a Fire Management Assistance Grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help with the firefight.
On Thursday, Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency in the county due to the fire. "This is a dangerous fire that's spreading quickly and is threatening lives,'' Newsom said in a statement. "California has mobilized state resources, including personnel, engines, and aircraft from Cal Fire and Cal OES, to protect communities as our fire and emergency response teams work around the clock to combat this fire. Stay safe and remain alert for instructions from local authorities as dangerous fire weather conditions continue.''
City News Service contributed to this article.
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