Firefighters continued to make progress Sunday against the destructive Mountain Fire in Ventura County. The fire, which has burned more than 20,000 acres and destroyed 134 structures, was about 26% contained early Sunday as firefighters continued to clear hot spots before winds picked up again Monday evening, officials said. authorities.
Ten areas remained under evacuation orders Sunday, including neighborhoods around Santa Paula and Somis. Eight others were under evacuation warnings, with residents urged to prepare for possible evacuation. Up-to-date evacuation information was available on the Ventura County Sheriff’s Emergency Services incident dashboard.
“The impact on our community is profound and we are working tirelessly alongside firefighters from Ventura County and surrounding areas as well as many emergency services to bring this fire under control,” said Capt. William Hutton, from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department. during a press conference Saturday evening.
Light winds off the ocean and favorable humidity levels Sunday helped authorities contain the fire, which broke out Wednesday morning amid extreme wind in Santa Ana. The fire forced thousands of people to evacuate and disrupted the lives of residents in several communities. The cause is still under investigation.
Authorities said they were continuing to monitor weather changes as winds were expected to pick up Monday night into Tuesday morning – although they were not expected to be as strong as the strong winds that initially fueled the fire.
“It’s something we’re monitoring closely,” Ryan Walbrun, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said at a news conference Saturday evening. “The wind speed right now doesn’t seem to be as strong as when the fire started.”
More than 130 structures were destroyed in the fire, most of which were homes. Another 46 were damaged, said Justin Boyajian of Cal Fire Tulare.
“We’re doing our best, trying to help people who lost their homes as much as possible,” Boyajian said.
About 500 customers were still without power in parts of Camarillo, Santa Paula and Somis, and it was not immediately clear when power would be restored, said David Eisenhauer, a spokesman for Southern California Edison.
“We still need to get on site safely, assess the damage and make repairs, so it’s hard to say at the moment,” he said. “We know this has been a very difficult time for [residents] and we will work as soon as we can safely restore power to them.
Residents planned to gather Sunday evening for a community meeting at Ventura County Fire Station 54 in Camarillo, where officials would answer residents’ questions and update them on progress in fighting the fire.
Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said during the news conference Saturday night that he understands people in the community are frustrated and need more information about what recovery will look like. The county also plans to bring together various service providers on Wednesday to help answer residents’ questions about the recovery process, he said. He urged patience as firefighters continue to work to contain the blaze.
“We continue to work diligently … to put this fire out, clean things up, close things down and get things ready for people to come back,” Gardner said. “And that takes time.”
