At a press conference Wednesday at 4 p.m., Ventura County officials updated the public on the status and speed of the wildfire, as well as crews’ plans to prioritize lives and safety in dangerous conditions.
Cal Fire reported that as of 5:45 p.m. Wednesday, the fire had spread to 10,500 acres in Ventura County, destroyed homes and structures, and remained 0% contained.
Key takeaways from the press conference include:
Please follow evacuation instructions.
Fire Chief Dustin Gardner emphasized the importance of following these orders, saying, “Homes can be replaced, but lives can’t be replaced.” “This fire is moving dangerously fast. If you’re from this area and know Southern California weather, you know how dangerous these fires can be. Sheriff’s orders to evacuate. If you see one, leave. These are not fires you can wait around.”
Sheriff Jim Freihoff said if you have an animal in need of protection, larger animals can go to the Ventura County Fairgrounds and smaller animals can go to the Camarillo Pet Shelter near the airport.
Visit vcemergency.com for ongoing evacuation orders and road closures.
Please avoid that area.
“Please, stay away,” Sheriff Freihoff urged. “Please continue to stay away from the area unless you absolutely have to be here.”
Freihoff said law enforcement has already contacted more than 14,000 people to evacuate the area.
Fire Operations Director Trevor Johnson said the fire has already jumped south of Highway 118 and continues to burn southwest toward the Highway 101 corridor.
“Unfortunately, the fire moved south of Highway 118 and established itself in the fuel bed north of the city of Camarillo,” Johnson said. Our firefighters are currently performing heroic acts at the scene of this incident. ”
Johnson said the fire is currently burning north of South Mountain Road to the bottom of the Santa Clara River south of the Santa Paula area.
Winds are pushing the fire southwest, impacting the community of Somis, Johnson said.
The fire is moving rapidly and dangerously.
“This is a typical Santa Ana-style event,” Fire Chief Gardner said.
Gardner said the fire was discovered more than 2.5 miles away.
Resources from many surrounding counties and agencies, including Los Angeles, Orange, Kern, and Santa Barbara counties, as well as CAL FIRE and its partner sheriffs, are responding.
“Every helicopter, every fixed-wing aircraft, everything we’ve got is out here fighting this fire, and it’s spreading dangerously,” Gardner said.
The red flag situation is expected to remain in place for at least another 24 hours.
Winds in Santa Ana will range from 20 to 40 mph, with gusts of 60 to 80 mph until about 6 p.m. Thursday, and humidity will be less than 10 percent, Weather and Fire Action Division Chief Jeff Shea said. .
Resources are facing a “severe crossfire”.
Operations Director Johnson said the fire was already underway when they first arrived Wednesday morning due to wind effects and burnout of various agricultural fuels.
“Firefighters immediately engaged in extracting people from the home and saving lives,” Johnson said.
Crews prioritize safety of life, protection of structures, and preservation of property.
“In a fire of this size, there’s so much going on at once that we can’t address all the issues. So we prioritize what we’re doing and what we’ve been trained to do. ,” Johnson said. “And what is precious is the people of Ventura County, the people who travel through our county, and their homes, their property, and their well-being.”
Officials are asking residents to sign up for alerts and continue monitoring news updates.
“We have committed every available resource to this case and worked with our partners to quickly resolve this case, but this is a tough firefight,” Johnson said.
