A brush fire that broke out Thursday morning on a mountain in Ventura County prompted evacuations of the nearby Cal State Channel Islands university campus with some 5,000 students, officials said. The blaze, named the Laguna fire, consumed 50 acres before firefighters were able to quickly bring it under control. Across Southern California, winds were forecast to intensify into early evening before easing on Friday.
A fast-moving blaze north of Los Angeles exploded to more than 10,000 acres in a matter of hours as fire tornadoes erupted and 50,000 weary residents were issued new evacuation warnings. The inferno, dubbed the Hughes Fire, broke out in the hills north of Santa Clarita near Lake Castaic, and jumped from just 500 acres to 10,176 on Wednesday. Some 31,000 residents were under mandatory evacuation orders while another 23,000 were put on high alert with warnings they should consider fleeing their homes.
L.A. County has issued evacuation orders for areas around Castaic Lake. Ventura County issued an evacuation order for an area east of Lake Piru and west of Interstate 5. The Palisades fire was 70% contained as of Wednesday evening. It has burned more than 23,400 acres.
