California fire: new blaze near LA, progress up north

Helicopters drop water after inmate crews set backfires to heavy brush along Madera Rd. as firefighters try to keep the Easy fire from crossing the road into Thousand Oaks, California, October 30, 2019. /VCG Photo

Firefighters in California battled a new fast-moving blaze on Wednesday that threatened the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, as rare "extreme" red flag warnings were issued for much of the Los Angeles region.

The fire in the Simi Valley northwest of Los Angeles – named Easy Fire – erupted around 6 a.m., forcing the evacuation of the library and nearby homes as it spread to more than 365 hectares, officials said.

Fire crews raced to protect the hilltop building from the flames raging out of control and fed by the wind gusts caused by hurricane.

Melissa Giller, a spokeswoman for the library, said that the archives and much of the memorabilia at the facility were safely stored in an underground fireproof vault.

She said the flames were closest to a pavilion housing a former Air Force One aircraft.

A firefighter cleans Phos-Chek fire retardant from a street that was under a drop by a firefighting jet after fire jumped the State Route 23 freeway during the Easy Fire near Simi Valley, California, October 30, 2019. /VCG Photo

The National Weather Service said powerful Santa Ana winds, with potential gusts of up to 130 kilometers per hour in mountainous areas, had created "extremely critical" conditions in parts of southern California.

"We expect the Santa Anas to be howling," the NWS said.

Closer to Los Angeles, firefighters were battling the Getty Fire, which began near the famous Getty Center museum on Monday and by Wednesday had burned 301 hectares with 27 percent containment.

Authorities said they feared the fire, which was caused by a tree branch that fell on power lines, could spread because of the strong winds expected to last through Thursday evening.

"It does take one ember, just one ember downwind, to start another brush fire," Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Chief Ralph Terrazas has warned.

Firefighters are covered with fire retardant from a drop by a firefighting jet over a threatened neighborhood after fire jumped the State Route 23 freeway at the Easy Fire near Simi Valley, California, October 30, 2019. /VCG Photo

LAFD spokeswoman Margaret Steward said that in anticipation of the record-strong Santa Ana winds, all staff had been mobilized and additional backup brought in.

"These resources will be strategically placed in key locations that have a history of being prone to wildfire," she said.

Further north, in Sonoma County, Cal Fire, the California fire department, said firefighters had made progress overnight battling the Kincade Fire, which has consumed 31,000 hectares and led to mandatory evacuation orders affecting nearly 200,000 people.

The wildfires spreading through the state come as California is still reeling from the aftermath of the most destructive wildfire in state history – the Camp Fire, which destroyed the town of Paradise and killed 86 people last year.

Similar blazes in northern California, including in the Napa and Sonoma wine regions, killed 44 people in 2017 and destroyed thousands of structures.

(With input from AFP)