CALIFORNIA: Wildfires Prompt Evacuations

SIMI VALLEY, CA - On Monday, May 18th in Ventura County, California, a new wildfire formed named the Sandy Fire. It has since burned over 2100 acres and grew quickly, threatening life and property. This prompted evacuation orders and warnings to the area.

Footage in the region shows the extent of the smoke and poor air quality.

Additional fires have since quickly formed in southern California, despite no red flag warnings or fire weather outlook. The winds managed to be strong enough for fires to quickly get out of control in the areas. The Bain Fire in Riverside started to burn heavy fuels at a moderate rate before quickly burning up to almost 1000 acres. This prompted evacuation orders and warnings for many Riverside Zones.

The Bain Fire is burning in Riverside County, CA. This fire began on Tuesday, May 19, and quickly spread to over 1,400 acres. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Another fire we are watching is one that possibly started from a shipwrecked sailor off the coast of California. This is the Santa Rosa Island Fire which is over 16,000 acres. Not many people reside on this island but there are species on the island that are threatened by the fire.

Due to the extent of several wildfires burning in southern California, air quality has worsened in the area, and air quality alerts have been issued for parts of the Greater Los Angeles area.

For more on these, be sure to join us at WeatherNation at :50 past the hour.