Ventura County Wildfire Grows To 90,000 Acres

MALIBU, CA – The Ventura County wildfire known as the Thomas Fire grew to 90,000 acres Wednesday night, leading to new mandatory evacuations in neighborhoods from Santa Paula to La Conchita; now more than 50,000 residents are under evacuation orders, according to Ventura County fire officials.

Route 150 in Ventura County closed Wednesday evening between Santa Ana Road at Lake Casitas and Route 192 at Casitas Pass Road near Carpinteria due to the Thomas Fire, according to CalTrans.

Earlier Wednesday afternoon, winds changed direction from offshore to onshore in Ventura County, pushing smoke from the Thomas Fire into the west county including Ventura, Oxnard, and towards Camarillo, according to the Ventura County Fire Department. This change in direction had a severe impact on air-quality and visibility.

The status of the fire heavily relies on the Santa Ana winds, which authorities anticipate to be extremely strong on Thursday and continuing through Saturday; winds have the potential to reach speeds of 80 miles per hour, according to Cal Fire Chief Ken Pimlott. On top of that, a dry climate and extremely low humidity is expected.

“When we have opportunities, when the winds have died down, we do direct firefighting on the fire line and try to get some containment,” Ventura County Fire Chief Mark Lorenzen said.

Conditions Thursday "are going to be extreme," warns Pimlott.

The blaze began Monday evening, tearing through the area as wind conditions shifted. By Wednesday, the flames reached the Pacific Ocean after crossing Highway 33, burning through oil fields, and then jumping across the 101 Freeway into Solimar Beach, according to authorities. Firefighters still don't have a true handle on the fire, with containment at 5 percent as of Wednesday night.

At least 150 structures were burned, 3,000 structures are threatened and nearly 180,000 customers in the region were without power, officials said. The entire city of Ventura, as well as, the communities of Casitas Springs and East Ojai Valley were ordered to leave in the most recent of mandatory evacuations. Live television showed multiple homes on Kailas Street and Alverstone Avenue being burned.

Highway 101 was closed overnight in some areas.

The Ventura County Fire Department released new objectives Wednesday to battle the Thomas Fire, including keeping the fire north of Highway 126, South of Highway 150 – Reeves Road to Hern Canyon Road to Nordhoff Ridge – and keeping the flames East of Highway 101.

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Officials said at a Tuesday morning press conference that one firefighter was injured in the blaze as more than 1,000 personnel work to gain ground on the fire being fueled by erratic Santa Ana winds. The fast-moving fire forced Gov. Jerry Brown to declare a state of emergency.

"This fire is very dangerous and spreading rapidly, but we'll continue to attack it with all we've got," Brown said in a statement. "It's critical residents stay ready and evacuate immediately if told to do so."

Crews from throughout the state were sent to the region to assist in tackling the fire. From the Bay Area, 10 engines comprising 44 firefighters from Marin County Fire, San Rafael, Ross Valley, and Tiburon left Tuesday morning to help contained the wildfire, Marin County Fire Battalion Chief Bret McTigue said.

Four Alameda County firefighters with Engine 304 and four firefighters from the Mountain View Fire Department who are part of the San Mateo County strike team were also deployed Tuesday morning.

A live map of the Thomas Fire can be seen below:

This is a developing story; Refresh the page for updates.

Patch editors Ashley Ludwig and Hoa Quach, Associated Press and City News Service contributed to this report; Photos courtesy of Ventura County Fire Department