A fire broke out Thursday afternoon near the southwest shore of Lake Piru in Ventura County and had burned nearly 300 acres by the evening. The flames stranded a half-dozen boaters, who were forced to shelter at the lake, officials said.
The fire, dubbed the Felicia Fire, threatened three to five structures, including homes and a U.S. Forest Service fire station. Video from OnScene.TV showed roaring flames leaping into the air. The fire burned dangerously close to a home as the afternoon wore on.
All threatened structures have crews assigned to protect them, said Andrew Dowd, public information officer for the Ventura County Fire Department.
The fire had burned 301 acres and was 14% contained as of 8 p.m.
Dowd told the Times that more than 500 firefighters affected were “making good progress” and that the fire’s advance had been stopped.
“Steep and rugged terrain with limited access hampers firefighting efforts,” the department wrote in an X article updating the progress of the fire.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department ordered an evacuation of the west shore of the lake and closed Piru Canyon Road. About 15 people were evacuated from recreational areas on the lake, including a campground and the nearby canyon.
A firefighting bulldozer works against advancing flames in the Ventura County fire Thursday afternoon.
(Eric Thayer / Associated Press)
Six boaters were unable to leave before roads closed, Dowd said, and sheltered in the marina parking lot north of the fire until park rangers could escort them out around 5 p.m.
The fire broke out around 1 p.m. and its cause remains under investigation, Dowd said. No injuries were reported.
Video released by the Ventura County Fire Department shows workers clearing brush while helicopters drop water on the fire in the distance.
