Thousands told to flee wildfire near Los Angeles

Fierce seasonal winds cast embers up to five km from the seat of the fire around Camarillo

LOS ANGELES:

Thousands of people were urged to flee an out-of-control wildfire burning around communities near Los Angeles on Thursday, with dozens of homes already lost to the fast-moving flames.

Fierce seasonal winds were casting embers up to three miles (five kilometers) from the seat of the fire around Camarillo, with new blazes getting established on hillsides, farmland and in residential areas.

The Mountain Fire grew rapidly from a standing start early Wednesday, and after 24 hours had consumed almost 20,000 acres (8,100 hectares), with towering flames leaping unpredictably and sending residents scrambling.

"We've been up all night watching this. I haven't slept," Erica Preciado told one local broadcaster as she drove her family out of the danger zone.

"We're just trying to get a safe place. I didn't even know what to take. I just have everything in my car," she said, gesturing tearfully to her packed vehicle.

A number of houses have been destroyed, some consumed by the flames in a matter of minutes.

One man told broadcaster KTLA he and his family had fled their home of 27 years, finding out later that it had been destroyed.

"It's all gone," he said, his voice catching. "It's all gone."

Ventura County Fire Department officials said they were throwing resources at the blaze. That included crews on the ground defending homes with hose lines working alongside bulldozers that were trying to remove fuels.

Helicopter pilots worked throughout the night dropping water, said Ventura County fire captain Trevor Johnson, predicting that the fight would continue for some time.

"We're going to have an active presence in there for days to come," he told reporters.

Hoses ran dry for crews battling the flames at one point late Wednesday, Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said.