Firefighters are gaining ground against a brush fire in the mountains north of Los Angeles, after it forced thousands to evacuate, according to authorities.
The Canyon Fire started Thursday afternoon, rapidly spreading across more than 7.6 square miles of dry, steep terrain in Ventura and Los Angeles counties. By 11pm, the fire was uncontained, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.
Over 400 personnel, along with planes and helicopters, fought the blaze. On Friday morning, no further growth was reported, although the fire remained uncontained, said Andrew Dowd, public information officer for the county fire department.
The fire is burning south of Lake Piru, a reservoir within the Los Padres National Forest, and near Lake Castaic, a recreation area previously impacted by the Hughes Fire in January. That earlier fire consumed approximately 15 square miles in six hours, prompting evacuation orders and warnings for 50,000 people.
Firefighters fighting the Canyon Fire capitalized on cooler overnight temperatures to directly attack the flames. Mr. Dowd stated that their efforts led to significant progress and subdued fire behavior by Friday morning.
“They were putting it all on the line to bring this fire under control,” he said.
One firefighter sustained a minor injury. No civilian injuries and no destruction of single-family or multi-family residences were reported, although two minor structures were lost, according to Mr. Dowd.
The National Weather Service forecasts sunny, hot, and dry conditions for the Canyon Fire area on Friday, with a high near 38C and minimum humidity in the mid-teens. Light winds are anticipated, shifting from south to southwest in the afternoon.
In Los Angeles County, approximately 2,700 residents evacuated, with 700 structures under mandatory evacuation orders as of late Thursday. An additional 14,000 residents and 5,000 structures were under evacuation warnings. Evacuation orders were downgraded to warnings in areas within the Val Verde zone.
Mr. Dowd stated that compared to LA County, the evacuation zones in Ventura County were relatively sparsely populated. Fifty-six people evacuated from the Lake Piru recreation area.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger urged residents to comply with evacuation orders.
“Extreme heat and low humidity in our north county have created dangerous conditions where flames can spread with alarming speed,” she said in a statement. “If first responders tell you to leave, go — without hesitation.”
The new fire comes as the Gifford Fire in central California became the state’s largest wildfire of the year, threatening hundreds of homes and burning out of control in the Los Padres National Forest.
The Gifford Fire had spread to 155 square miles by Thursday night and was 15% contained.
The fire grew out of at least four smaller fires that started on August 1 along State Route 166, forcing closures in both directions east of Santa Maria, a city of about 110,000.
At least four people have been injured. The causes of the fires are under investigation.
Elevated wildfire risk is predicated through the weekend across much of inland California as a heatwave intensifies. August and September are typically the most dangerous months for wildfires in the state.
