Major forest fires in Southern California (USA)

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The forests of California (United States) are plagued by several fires, to the point of threatening the surroundings of residential suburbs. Under the effect of violent winds, sometimes reaching 130 km/h, the fires consumed 3,600 hectares of land and numerous homes. The firefighters are on the job. Although some vehicles were saved from the flames, the material damage was considerable.

The fire triggered evacuation orders Wednesday for more than 10,000 people as it threatened 3,500 structures in suburban communities, ranches and agricultural areas around Camarillo. The fire grew from less than about 1.2 square kilometers to more than 62 square kilometers in just over five hours.

First responders pleaded with residents to evacuate. MPs made contact with 14,000 people to urge them to leave as embers spread for miles and ignited new flames.

Meanwhile, to the south, Los Angeles County Fire Department crews worked to contain a wildfire near Broad Beach in Malibu as authorities briefly closed Pacific Coast Highway as flames burned near of multi-million dollar properties. Residents were told to shelter in place as planes dropped water on the Broad Fire, which spanned 20 hectares. Firefighters said two structures burned.

Wednesday's fires were burning in the same areas as other recent destructive fires, including the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which killed three people and destroyed 1,600 homes near Los Angeles, and the 2017 Thomas Fire, which destroyed more than a thousand homes and other structures in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.