Firefighters Gain More Control of Southern California Blaze That Spread Rapidly
The New York Times
After the Mountain fire ballooned to more than 20,000 acres in less than 24 hours, improving weather conditions helped crews contain more of the blaze on Saturday.
Calming winds helped firefighters gain the upper hand on Saturday against the Mountain fire in Southern California, after three days of pitched battle using dozens of aircraft, hundreds of fire trucks and legions of firefighters on foot wielding saws and shovels.
High winds and thick vegetation fueled the Mountain fire, which started on Wednesday near the city of Oxnard in Ventura County and exploded to more than 20,000 acres in less than 24 hours. But the winds died down on Friday, aiding fire crews in their fight against the blaze.
As of Sunday morning, the fire was 26 percent contained. The nearly 3,000 personnel working to tame the blaze planned to “mop up” hot spots and move through burned neighborhoods to assess the damage, officials said on Saturday.
The Ventura County fire chief, Dustin Gardner, said at a briefing Friday evening that he was grateful for the emergency workers who responded on the day the fire broke out. They “brought this calm to where we’re at today,” he said.
Earlier in the week, fierce winds that gusted up to 80 miles per hour hurled flaming embers far beyond the fire line, sparking new fires, setting houses ablaze and grounding some firefighting aircraft. Roughly 10,000 people were forced to evacuate in what quickly became one of the most destructive wildfires in Southern California in recent years. As of Friday night, about 2,000 were still waiting to go home.
Roughly 130 structures have been reported destroyed and damaged. There were no known fatalities, and no reports of missing people, Sheriff James Fryhoff of Ventura County, said in the Friday briefing.
After the Mountain fire ballooned to more than 20,000 acres in less than 24 hours, improving weather conditions helped crews contain more of the blaze on Saturday.
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