Woolsey Fire Balloons To 35,000 Acres: Officials

CHATSWORTH, CA — The Woolsey Fire has now scorched 35,000 acres, Ventura and Los Angeles County fire officials said Friday evening. As the fast-burning flames rapidly spread, destroying homes and an iconic western film set in the process, Malibu and Hidden Hills residents were evacuated causing a miles-long backup on Pacific Coast Highway, the main evacuation route for Malibu residents forced out of the area due to the fire.

By Friday night, mandatory evacuation orders were added for all homes in the West Hills area west of Valley Circle Boulevard between Roscoe Boulevard and Vanowen Street, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. Youth and staff at Los Angeles County Probation's Campus Kilpatrick in Malibu were evacuated to Challenger Memorial Youth Center in Lancaster Friday evening due to the Woolsey Fire, a fast-spreading brush fire that broke out Thursday and spread rapidly. All youth and staff assigned to Campus Kilpatrick are safe and accounted for, a spokesperson said.

"This is a very stressful time, our first responders haven't slept," a Ventura County fire official said at a press briefing Monday morning. "Throughout the state of California there are fires, so there isn't as much support as we need, but we're resilient and the most important thing is just to be safe."

Governor-elect Gavin Newsom issued an emergency proclamation for Los Angeles and Ventura counties due to the Woolsey and Hill fires. The president and Federal Emergency Management Agency have also granted California's request, submitted Thursday by the governor's office, for a presidential emergency declaration for direct federal assistance to supplement the state and local emergency response to the major wildfires burning in Ventura, Los Angeles and Butte counties.

Federal assistance includes air assets to mitigate the impacts of the fires, shelter supplies and water for evacuated residents, as well as support for mass care, ambulatory transport and the evacuation of people with access and functional needs.

The Woolsey Fire was rapidly spreading due in part to wind gusts of up to 70 miles an hour, destroying several homes as a wall of flames headed toward the ocean Friday.

“This thing moves fast and you need to be prepared," Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Chief John Benedict said at a press briefing Friday morning. "If you’re ready to go, go. If you’re being told to go, get out of there."

All four traffic lanes on Pacific Coast Highway – the main evacuation route for Malibu residents forced out of the area due to the fire – were converted for use by southbound drivers only to help clear a miles-long backup. As of Friday afternoon, no northbound traffic will be permitted on the roadway from Santa Monica to Malibu.

Santa Monica Mountains officials reported Friday that the blaze has burned the Paramount Ranch Western Town, the filming scene for hundreds of movies and TV shows over the years, including more recently HBO's "Westworld." In a Twitter post, park officials said they "do not have any details or photos, but it is our understanding that the structures have burned."

The blaze broke out in Ventura County Thursday night and had scorched 8,000 acres by Friday morning, and was zero percent contained. The wildfire jumped over the Ventura (101) Freeway, destroying multiple structures and threatening at least another 30,000 homes in the two counties, fire officials said.

"It’s been long night," Los Angeles Fire Department Assistant Chief Corey Rose said at the press briefing. "I just want to thank the community for being so resilient and for listening to evacuation orders. It’s never easy to do that."

All schools in the Las Virgines Unified School District in Calabasas, as well as Viewpoint School, Montessori of Calabasas, Montessori of Calabasas Too and Muse School were closed Friday as a result of the Woolsey Fire, according to the city of Calabasas. Classes were also canceled Friday at Pepperdine University's Malibu and Calabasas campuses, Santa Monica College's Malibu classes and at all Malibu schools in the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District, according to a statement from the City of Malibu.

A large animal evacuation center was established at the Zuma Beach parking lot in Malibu, and at Hansen Dam Equestrian Center, 11127 Orcas Ave. in Lake View Terrace. The American Red Cross says the nearest evacuation center for residents of Malibu is at Palisades High School, 15777 Bowdoin St., in Pacific Palisades.

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Other evacuation centers include Thousand Oaks High School, 2323 N. Moorpark Rd.; Thousand Oaks Teen Center, 1375 East Janss Road; the Goebel Senior Adult Center, 1384 E. Janss Road; Taft Charter High School at 5461 Winnetka Ave. in Woodland Hills; and the Rancho Santa Susana Recreation Center 5005 E Los Angeles Ave in Simi Valley (no animals accepted), according to Fox 11.

Pierce College at 6201 Winnetka Ave. in Woodland Hills and the Los Angeles County Animal Services were accepting animals, but they've reached capacity. Residents that need animal shelter can now take their animals to Hansen Dam at 11127 Orcas Ave. in Sylmar.

The Los Angeles Police Department was placed on a citywide tactical alert about 12:45 a.m. to ensure all resources are available to assist with any evacuation orders and road closures prompted by the Woolsey Fire, according to a department statement.

"If you're in an affected area and have been ordered to evacuate, evacuate," the statement said.

Authorities had to provide emergency assistance to residents trapped by the fire in the 5600 block of Hollytree Drive , according to the Ventura County Star.

About 1:30 a.m., all residents south of the Ventura Freeway between Westlake Boulevard on the west, Mulholland Highway to the south and Las Virgenes Road to the east were told to leave the area immediately, according to Malibu Search and Rescue. That includes areas of Westlake Village and the unincorporated community of Cornell, both in L.A. County.

About 12:30 a.m., all residents in Los Angeles and Ventura counties north of the Ventura (101) Freeway, south of Bell Canyon Road, west of Valley Circle Boulevard and east of Erbes Road, as well as north of Kanan Road, west of Lindero Canyon to Erbes Road extending north to Sunset Hills Boulevard, were told to evacuate, according to the Ventura County Fire Department. That includes areas of Agoura Hills, Calabasas and Westlake Village, all in L.A. County.

The Woolsey Fire broke out about 2:25 p.m. Thursday, pushed by strong Santa Ana winds, which have been preventing fire commanders from ordering aerial assaults.

"The wind-whipped conditions... this is ripe conditions for explosive fire behavior," Los Angeles County Fire Captain Erik Scott told NBC4. "This is the new normal. When we have conditions like this, when it's such incredible wind, that brings us in to a different caliber, so it's become a much more challenging condition."

A Los Angeles County Fire Department battalion chief told NBC4 the flames could burn "for days."

By early Friday morning, there were no reported injuries to civilians or firefighters, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.

The Orange County Fire Authority sent two strike teams to the assist firefighters battling the Woolsey Fire, Capt. Steve Concialdi said.

Calabasas city officials advised residents not yet under mandatory evacuation orders to prepare to leave by gathering their IDs, medications, important documents, emergency supplies and a change of clothes.

Los Angeles county and city crews were assisting in the firefight, which was taking place as a second, larger brush fire raged further west in Ventura County in the Santa Rosa Valley/Thousand Oaks area.

Thousand Oaks was also the scene of a mass shooting late Wednesday at a nightclub where 11 civilians and a sheriff's sergeant were killed. The gunman also died from what's been reported to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Related >> Hill Fire Grows, Evacs, Strike Teams Sent From Multiple Counties

City News Service; Photo: LACounty Fire PIO‏