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    • Mountain Fire forced thousands to flee, destroyed homes
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    Mountain Fire forced thousands to flee, destroyed homes

    Harry Posted on

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    A “dangerously fast-moving” wildfire broke out during a Santa Ana windstorm Wednesday morning, ripping through miles of local hillsides, destroying homes and forcing thousands to flee as the blaze spread across more than 14,000 acres.

    Santa Ana winds were gusting over 80 mph when the Mountain Fire broke out shortly before 9 a.m. in critically dry scrub on South Mountain near the 7900 block of Balcom Canyon Road in the Somis area.

    The hills near the Bixby Road junction are full of farm properties. The fire moved west towards the Saticoy slopes, then moved south towards Highway 118 and into agricultural areas north of the highway.

    “Brush is burning, grass is burning, fences are burning, farmland is burning and structures are burning,” Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said Wednesday. he said. “This fire is moving dangerously fast.”

    By noon, the fire had spread about 2.5 miles off 118 into the Camarillo Heights neighborhood, creating a separate fire island to the south in and around Camarillo. It was seen that flames surrounded many houses in the area where there are large houses on the hills around Spanish Hills Club, Sterling Hills Golf Club and Las Posas Country Club.

    Firefighters were sent to homes to help citizens who could not be evacuated due to the approach of the flames. Some street lights were not working, paralyzing traffic as residents tried to leave.

    “Firefighters were immediately busy getting people out of their homes and saving lives,” said county fire Capt. Trevor Johnson, chief of fire operations.

    There was zero containment of the fire as of early Thursday, and authorities had not yet announced the number of structures damaged and destroyed. The fire department said two people were taken to a local hospital for smoke inhalation.

    The cause of the fire continued to be investigated until late Wednesday.

    Evacuation order was given as the flames advanced towards the neighborhoods

    Authorities issued evacuation orders affecting thousands of residents early Wednesday and Thursday.

    As of Thursday morning, the boundaries covered an area from South Mountain Road south of Santa Paula to Balcom Canyon Road east on 118 in Somis. On the south side, the order extended to Highway 101 west of Central Avenue in and around Camarillo. The northwest corner included the rural Saticoy hills around Saticoy Country Club.

    An evacuation warning also covered a sparsely populated section of South Mountain south of the Santa Clara River. In East Ventura, an earlier evacuation warning around the intersection of Highway 126 and Wells Road has been lifted.

    Firefighters from Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Kern and Orange counties as well as Cal Fire responded to assist. Personnel from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and other law enforcement agencies also gathered in the area to assist.

    “Every helicopter, every fixed-wing aircraft, everything we can get our hands on is out here fighting this fire,” Gardner said at a news conference. “It is moving at a dangerous rate of spread. This fire was detected more than two and a half miles away.”

    He appealed to everyone who was told to leave to go. “This isn’t a fire where one can wait to see what happens,” he said.

    As winds carried embers far beyond the fire front, crews used everything from aerial infrared technology to firefighters standing on rooftops to spot newbies.

    Fixed-wing aircraft were grounded early because wind conditions made retardant drops impossible, officials said. Later some declines were possible.

    “We continue to look for opportunities to use this to our advantage,” Johnson said.

    Residents running away from the fire

    A temporary evacuation area has been established at Padre Serra Parish in Camarillo. The Red Cross has a caravan carrying cots and food on hand if needed, said David Wagner, the organization’s spokesman.

    By midday, more than two dozen horses and a dozen goats were evacuated to the Ventura County Fairgrounds. More was expected.

    Nancy Reeves was on a Somis farm about 2 miles from the fire. He thought he would pass by the property.

    “Then the wind changed direction and came right at us,” said Reeves, who brought nine horses to the fairgrounds.

    Animal evacuations were coordinated by Ventura County Animal Services. A volunteer livestock rescue team was also activated. Dogs, cats, rabbits and other small animals can be taken to the animal shelter on Aviation Drive in Camarillo.

    Schools are closing; weather alert has been issued

    Schools in Ventura County were closed Thursday due to fire.

    Dozens of school districts and individual campuses serving more than 70,000 students have announced closures. according to a list Compiled by the Ventura County Department of Education. The list included campuses in Ventura, Santa Paula, Oxnard, Port Hueneme and Camarillo.

    Santa Paula Unified School District, Mesa Union School District and ACE Charter School also announced their closures on Friday.

    Camarillo Heights elementary school was evacuated shortly after noon and students were bused to Monte Vista Middle School, which is part of the Pleasant Valley School District. The district reported no injuries or property damage as of the afternoon.

    The Ventura County Air Pollution Control District issued an air quality alert Wednesday due to smoke spreading into Camarillo and Oxnard.

    Wildfire smoke and ash can damage the heart and lungs, officials said. The agency recommended that residents in these areas stay indoors whenever possible, close windows and doors, and operate home and car air conditioning units in recirculation mode.

    Authorities warn of dangerous situations

    The National Weather Service issued a statement red flag warningIt is triggered when conditions can cause fires to ignite easily and spread rapidly.

    agency categorized the warning It’s considered a “particularly dangerous situation,” with humidity levels expected to drop and Santa Ana winds gusting as high as 80 mph.

    Winds were expected to peak on Wednesday, while conditions were expected to remain gusty and dry through Thursday. Humidity levels may approach single digits again. The red flag warning was expected to remain in effect on Thursday.

    Ventura County Sheriff Jim Fryhoff requested the governor declare a state of emergency; this was a step that could help regions qualify for disaster assistance.

    Edison turns off the electricity

    Thousands of local Southern California Edison customers lost power early Wednesday; The blackouts were designed to prevent electrical equipment from starting fires.

    At Wednesday’s press conference, officials said it was not immediately clear whether circuits in the area were de-energized when the Mountain Fire started.

    Edison had warned that he planned to watch dozens of local circuits and others in the area by Thursday. would turn off the power in case of dangerous conditions

    More than 90,000 customers across the county were on circuits monitored for outages, with outages reported from Ventura to Simi Valley. As of early Thursday morning, the county’s Department of Emergency Services estimated 14,000 people were still without power.

    Edison officials said that if an outage occurs, electricity will likely not continue when the wind is gone. Crews need to patrol the area before restoring power and resolving issues.

    Authorities urged citizens to comply with emergency warnings. To do this, go to: readyventuracounty.org/vc-alert/. Updates on the Mountain Fire, evacuations and road closures are available at: vcemergency.com.

    Reporters Ernesto Centeno Araujo, Tom Kisken, Isaiah Murtaugh and Wes Woods II contributed to this report.

    Cheri Carlson covers environmental and county government for the Ventura County Star. Reach her at [email protected] or 805-437-0260.

    Harry
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