Live updates: Mountain Fire grows to 19,600 acres, moves toward Santa Paula, Somis communities
ByABC7.com staff
Last updated: Thursday, November 7, 2024 11:18PM GMT
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CAMARILLO, Calif. (KABC) -- Thousands of residents were forced to flee a fast-moving wildfire, called the Mountain Fire, as it consumed dozens of homes in several Ventura County communities.
The Mountain Fire grew to 19,600 acres by Thursday afternoon, with no containment, Cal Fire said. The blaze is now moving toward the communities of Santa Paula and Somis after destroying parts of Camarillo. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The out-of-control brush fire broke out near the 7900 block of Balcom Canyon Road and Bradley Road at approximately 9:30 a.m. Wednesday. The fire department initially described the incident as a two-alarm fire that burned 250 acres, but it quickly exploded due to the strong Santa Ana winds and dry brush in the region.
Mountain Fire in Moorpark evacuations, road closures, evacuation shelter
Evacuation orders:
Zone 1 - North of Somis: areas north of East Los Angeles Avenue/Hwy 118, west of Balcom Canyon Road, and east of La Vista Avenue
Zone 2 - Saticoy Country Club: east of Los Angeles Ave/Hwy 118, and south of the Santa Clara River and north of Beardsley Road
Zone 3 - Areas south of Hwy 118, west of N. Lewis Road, north of North Loop Drive and Mission Drive, and east of Fairway Drive
Zone 4 - West Camarillo (Las Posas/Spanish Hills areas): north of Las Posas Road, south and east of Central Avenue and Beardsley Road, and west of Anacapa Drive
Zone 6 - The area extending south of Santa Clara River, east of Los Angeles Avenue, north of Saticoy County Club, and west of Briggs Road
Zone 7 - The area north of Hwy 101 and south and east of Beardsley Avenue, and south of Central Avenue
Zone 9 - The area east of Santa Paula Community Golf Course, north along Santa Clara River, west of South Mountain Road at Sespe Street, south to Bixby Road
Zone 10 - An area extending east of 12th Street to Willard Road, south of HWY 126 along Santa Clara River
Unincorporated Somis: West to Saticoy Country Club, east to Balcom Canyon Road, south to Highway 118.
Evacuation warnings:
Zone 8 - An area extending south of South Mountain Road, east of Briggs Road, and west of 12th Street and Bixby Road
Road closures:
Northbound Lewis Road at Las Posas
Eastbound Highway 118 at Wells Road
Westbound Highway 118 at Tierra Rejada Road
Temporary evacuation shelter: Padre Serra Parish 5205 Upland Road Camarillo, CA 93012
Large animal evacuation center: The Ventura County Fairgrounds are at full capacity and will not be able to take any more large animals that were evacuated. If someone has a horse or livestock that needs to be evacuated, call Ventura County Animal Services main number at 805 388-4341 to get details on an alternate location to board them.
Small animal evacuation center: Ventura County Animal Services (Camarillo Airport) 600 Aviation Drive Camarillo, 93010
Fire information hotline: 805-465-6650
8:26 PM GMT
Santa Ana winds will return next week
Santa Ana winds are expected to return to Southern California next week, bringing another round of red flag warnings and heightened wildfire danger.
Ventura County Fire Capt. Trevor Johnson said everyone is preparing for it.
"Our goal is to not only take care of all the community out here but bring stabilization to this incident so that we can free up resources and be ready for the next fire," he said.
Johnson said the Mountain Fire is not a full capacity staffing, which allows crews to be ready to battle another fire if one should break out.
"If another incident were to arise, we're fully prepared to handle that incident as well," he said.
3 hours ago
Fire chief addresses reports that crews ran out of water
Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner addressed reports that crews ran out of water Wednesday night. Gardner explained crews at a lower elevation did have water and were able to shuttle water up to crews.
"It's a normal operation, running out of water," he explained during a news conference Thursday. "I don't want to say it's abnormal, but it's normal enough that we plan for it. So it's impactful, but it will be mitigated."
Garnder said hundreds of fire trucks were on the front lines Wednesday night and were pumping water all night.
"We have been fighting the fire for 26 hours, and we had all of those fire trucks hooked up to all of those hydrants, and we drained water systems down," he said.
Gardner said the county and Cal OES teams work to make sure all the water resources are ready to go.
CHP officer's family of 6 loses home; patrol SUV charred
CHP Officer Gregory Bowcock's family lost their home in the Mountain Fire. The family of six grabbed what they could and fled as the flames raced uphill toward their home.
CHP Officer Gregory Bowcock's family lost their home in the Mountain Fire. The family of six grabbed what they could and fled as the flames raced uphill toward their home.
Officer Bowcock's work SUV was completely charred, and his home was burned to the ground. Four generations of his family had lived in that house.
The family's church community helped them find an Airbnb to stay in temporarily.
Bowcock's son Mac helped make sure his siblings were safe.
"I was running around grabbing things that we need and im trying to get the kids safe because I don't want to lose them, because well, they're my brothers and sisters, so I don't want to lose them...I miss our house, but it's better that we still have our lives," Mac said.
Childhood home now in ashes: 'I can't believe it's gone'
"I can't believe it's gone." Erika Bauer's childhood home in Camarillo was completely destroyed by the Mountain Fire. Her parents lived there since 1978. Now, their beloved house is reduced to ashes.
Erika Bauer walked through what was left of her childhood home Thursday morning. Her parents have lived in the Las Posas Estates community in Camarillo since 1978. The home held so many memories for her family
"I can't believe it's gone. I don't even know what to say right now. This is surreal. I know we live in a fire danger area but it came out of nowhere it was so fast," Bauer described.
The Mountain Fire turned their beloved home to ashes.
Bauer says her parents were at home when the flames came racing toward their property. Her mother was able to help her father, who is blind, evacuate safely before their home was engulfed in flames.
