Firefighters and sheriff’s deputies push a vintage car away from a burning house as the Mountain Fire burns in Camarillo, Calif., Wednesday. Noah Berger/Associated Press

CAMARILLO, Calif. — A fast-moving wildfire fueled by high winds ravaged a community northwest of Los Angeles for a second day Thursday after destroying dozens of homes and forcing thousands of residents to flee when it exploded in just a few hours. .

The mountain fire triggered evacuation orders for more than 10,000 people Wednesday as it threatened 3,500 structures in suburban communities, ranches and agricultural areas around Camarillo, California Gov. Gavin said Newsom, in a statement. The fire was at 0% as of Wednesday evening, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.

The National Weather Service said a red flag warning, indicating high fire danger conditions, would remain in effect until 6 p.m. Thursday. Winds are expected to decrease significantly by Thursday evening, the weather service said.

Authorities in several Southern California counties urged residents to remain vigilant amid fast-spreading fires, power outages and downed trees amid the latest round of notorious Santa Ana winds. There were more than 30,000 customers without power statewide as of early Thursday, including about 3,000 in Ventura County and about 4,000 in Los Angeles County, according to poweroutage.us.

Flames consumed homes amid smoke and firefighters worked to put out the blazes and douse homes with water as the fires approached.

The Mountain Fire was burning in a region that has seen some of California’s most destructive fires over the years. A thick plume of smoke rose several hundred meters into the sky on Wednesday, covering entire neighborhoods and limiting the visibility of firefighters and evacuees.

The fire grew from less than half a square mile to more than 16 square miles in just over five hours. As of Wednesday evening, it was about 22 square miles, the Ventura County Fire Department said in a social media post. Efforts to fight the fire continued through the night on the ground and with helicopters flying at night.

At least 800 firefighters were assigned to the blaze and hundreds more were arriving from across the state, the department said. Damage assessment was scheduled to begin Thursday, but the department said many structures were affected.

First responders asked residents to evacuate. MPs made contact with 14,000 people to urge them to leave as embers spread for miles and ignited new flames.

Television reporters film flames from the Mountain Fire consuming a home in Camarillo, California, on Wednesday. Noah Berger/Associated Press

The Ventura County Office of Education announced that more than a dozen school districts and campuses in the county were closed Thursday and a few were already expected to be closed Friday.

Ventura County Fire Capt. Trevor Johnson described crews running their engines toward homes threatened by flames to save lives.

“It’s as intense as it gets. The hairs on the back of the firefighters’ necks, I’m sure, were standing up,” he said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.

Two people suffered apparent smoke inhalation and were taken to the hospital Wednesday, firefighters said. No firefighters reported serious injuries.

Officials said they were using all resources, including water-tight helicopters and fixed-wing planes, dropping fire retardants, but the fire was still growing out of control. Andrew Dowd, a spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department, said he did not have details on how many structures were damaged.

Meanwhile, to the south, Los Angeles County fire crews worked to contain a wildfire near Broad Beach in Malibu as authorities briefly closed Pacific Coast Highway as flames burned near properties in several million dollars. Residents were asked to shelter in place as planes dropped water on the 50-acre Broad Fire. As of Wednesday evening, the fire was 60% contained and its progress had been stopped, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said in a statement. Firefighters said two structures burned.

With forecast gusts up to 50 mph and humidity levels as low as 9 percent, parts of Southern California could experience conditions ripe for “extreme and life-threatening” fire behavior for up to Thursday, the weather service said. Wind gusts exceeded 61 mph on Wednesday.

Forecasters also issued red flag warnings through Thursday from California’s central coast to the San Francisco Bay area and northern counties, where strong winds were also expected.

Utilities in California have begun turning off equipment during high winds and extreme fire risks after a series of massive and deadly wildfires in recent years were sparked by power lines and d other infrastructure. As of Wednesday, more than 65,000 customers in Southern California were without power as a precaution, and more than 20,000 in Northern California.

Wednesday’s fires were burning in the same areas as other recent destructive fires, including the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which killed three people and destroyed 1,600 homes near Los Angeles, and the 2017 Thomas Fire, which destroyed more than a thousand homes and other structures in Ventura. and Santa Barbara counties. Southern California Edison paid tens of millions of dollars to settle claims after its equipment was blamed for the two fires.

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