Maria Fire Is Latest California Blaze to Send Thousands Fleeing
A new fire that flared up in Ventura County has grown to cover nearly 9,000 acres.
ByNicholas Bogel-Burroughs
Another fire erupted in Southern California overnight and was growing Friday morning, destroying two buildings and leading the authorities to order 7,500 people to evacuate.
As firefighters continued to battle several blazes up and down the state, the most recent, named the Maria fire, flared up in Ventura County on Thursday evening and grew to cover nearly 9,000 acres as of 7 a.m.
Even though the fire remained fully uncontained, firefighters said they were confident that it would not grow much larger. Still, the county sheriff said that a drone — apparently flown by someone trying to snap photographs of the fire — had impeded the authorities’ use of an aircraft to curb the blaze.
“This created quite a dangerous situation,” Sheriff Bill Ayub of Ventura County said at a news conference. “It’s not only illegal, but it hampers our firefighting ability.” He did not provide more details on the incident.
The fire is swelling in part because of dry brush, which acts as fuel, and Santa Ana winds that pushed several other fires through rural and suburban areas in recent weeks. In addition to the 1,800 homes and businesses threatened by the Maria fire, avocado and citrus orchards are also at risk of being charred, said Mark Lorenzen, the Ventura County fire chief.
Wind Speeds in California on Wednesday
Slower
Faster
10 a.m.
4 a.m.
CALIFORNIA
CALIFORNIA
NEVADA
NEVADA
Kincade Fire
Kincade Fire
Easy Fire
Easy Fire
PACIFIC
OCEAN
PACIFIC
OCEAN
Getty Fire
Getty Fire
10 p.m.
4 p.m.
CALIFORNIA
CALIFORNIA
NEVADA
NEVADA
Kincade Fire
Kincade Fire
Easy Fire
Easy Fire
PACIFIC
OCEAN
PACIFIC
OCEAN
Getty Fire
Getty Fire
Slower
Faster
10 a.m.
4 a.m.
CALIF.
CALIF.
NEV.
NEV.
Kincade Fire
Kincade Fire
Easy Fire
Easy Fire
PACIFIC
OCEAN
PACIFIC
OCEAN
Getty Fire
Getty Fire
4 p.m.
10 p.m.
CALIF.
CALIF.
NEV.
NEV.
Kincade Fire
Kincade Fire
Easy Fire
Easy Fire
PACIFIC
OCEAN
PACIFIC
OCEAN
Getty Fire
Getty Fire
Slower
Faster
10 a.m.
CALIF.
NEV.
Kincade Fire
Easy Fire
Getty Fire
PACIFIC
OCEAN
4 p.m.
CALIF.
NEV.
Kincade Fire
Easy Fire
Getty Fire
PACIFIC
OCEAN
At least 500 firefighters were working to keep the flames at bay, and they were confident of containing the fire at 12,000 acres.
“It’s eventually going to run out of fuel,” said John McNeil, an assistant fire chief who assured residents the fire would not approach the size of the Thomas fire, a blazed caused by power lines that killed at least one firefighter and burned more than 281,000 acres in 2017.
It is too early for the authorities to say what caused the Maria fire, which is burning about 15 miles northeast of Oxnard, Calif. In Northern California, the state’s largest utility, Pacific Gas and Electric, earlier this week shut off power to nearly 1 million customers to avoid igniting wildfires amid extremely dry and windy conditions.
The Maria fire began only 12 miles away from the Easy fire, which neared the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum before being turned away by firefighters. That fire had burned about 18,000 acres by Friday morning and was 80 percent contained.
In Northern California, the state’s largest active fire, the Kincade fire in Sonoma County, remained at about 77,700 acres and was 68 percent contained. The fire has destroyed 352 homes and businesses and injured four people, but most residents who were told to evacuate have been able to return, and no one has died, the authorities said.
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