Firefighters worry as winds threaten to feed blaze in Ventura and LA counties
LOS ANGELES - A forecast that includes several days of gusting Santa Ana winds has fire officials worried about the possible spread of the 83,000-acre Woolsey fire straddling Ventura and Los Angeles counties, officials said Sunday.
The massive blaze, which has claimed two lives and forced more than 250,000 people from Malibu to Thousand Oaks to evacuate, was 10 percent contained as of Sunday morning.
But expected wind gusts of 40 mph or stronger over the next several days have officials concerned the fire could spread in a quick and unprecedented fashion, and they urged residents who were sheltering in place to evacuate immediately.
"Maybe 10 or 20 years ago you stayed in your homes when there was a fire and you were able to protect them," Ventura County Fire Chief Mark Lorenzen said. "We're entering a new normal. Things are not the way they were 10 years ago."
The fire had burned 83,275 acres as of
