[dropcap size=big]W[/dropcap]ildfires ignited in Ventura and Los Angeles counties this week but so far no lives have been reported lost, Ventura County officials said at a news conference Friday. But the Woolsey fire is still barely contained, and is now making its way into the San Fernando Valley community of West Hills. In Butte County, in Northern California, the Camp Fire has already claimed at least nine people’s lives.
The fires were almost expected, considering the dry and windy SoCal weather, and our now year-round fire season. And still nothing seems to halt the growing rage of fire season each year. But there are steps we can do as residents of the region to prepare and help one another out in case of a devastating fire. The first of which is to stay informed.
Here is some relevant information you should know today, through the weekend, and for the foreseeable future here in California.
Weather
Extra-dry conditions combined with Santa Ana winds from the east are sparking the blazes currently burning structures and homes in southeast Ventura County and the western edges of Los Angeles city. This includes the communities of Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, Agoura Hills, and the city of Malibu. A smaller fire in Griffith Park also forced the evacuation of some animals at the L.A. Zoo, but that fire has been mostly, if not completely extinguished.