Tech: Schools and freeways closed, thousands of people forced to flee as multiple wildfires tear through Southern California

A number of wildfires broke out in the Los Angeles area on Monday and Tuesday — and they're showing no signs of stopping.

• A series of wildfires are raging in Los Angeles and Ventura counties in Southern California.
• The three largest blazes — known as the Thomas Fire, the Creek Fire, and the Rye Fire — are burning around Ventura, Sylmar, and Santa Clarita, scorching thousands of acres and showing no signs of stopping.
• Many areas are under mandatory evacuation orders, affecting nearly 200,000 people.

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A series of wildfires are burning out of control in Los Angeles and Ventura counties in Southern California.

The first and largest blaze, dubbed the Thomas Fire, started Monday night in Ventura County. As of Wednesday morning, it had grown to more than 65,000 acres and destroyed at least 150 structures out of at least 12,000 threatened.

The flames have crossed the 101 Freeway near Solimar Beach in Ventura County and have now reached the Pacific Ocean. Mandatory evacuation orders affect nearly 200,000 people, and authorities have closed the 405 Freeway, causing gridlock throughout the region.

Gov. Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency, freeing up state funds to help tackle the wildfires.

"This fire is very dangerous and spreading rapidly, but we'll continue to tackle it with all we've got," Brown said. "It's critical residents stay ready and evacuate immediately if told to do so."

Ventura County Fire Chief Mark Lorenzen told reporters that the fires' growth had been "absolutely exponential."

Weather conditions had aligned to make the LA area somewhat of a tinderbox. The region is under a "red flag" advisory because of Santa Ana winds expected to blow through Friday, the National Weather Service said. That appears to make containment nearly impossible. Wind speeds of up to 80 mph were recorded on Tuesday, according to the Los Angeles Times.

"All that firefighters can do when we have winds like this is get out ahead, evacuate people, and protect structures," Lorenzen said.

The NWS warned on Monday, hours before the blazes started, that "there will be the potential for very rapid spread of wildfire" and "extreme fire behavior."

As the Ventura fire raged, another one near the Los Angeles suburb of Sylmar broke out early Tuesday morning and has continued to grow.

The Creek Fire has charred more than 11,000 acres across Sylmar, Lake View Terrace, and Shadow Hills. Dozens of structures had burned, and there was 0% containment as of Wednesday morning, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Authorities said a portion of the 210 Freeway would be closed through at least Wednesday morning, and mandatory evacuations remain in effect for canyon and foothill areas in the path of the flames on both sides of the 210 Freeway, according to KPCC, a local NPR affiliate.

The Los Angeles Unified School District closed more than 50 schools on Wednesday.

Another blaze, the Rye Fire, broke out near Santa Clarita late Tuesday morning and was 5% contained as of Wednesday morning. More than 500 firefighters were on the scene.

A new fire dubbed the Skirball Fire broke out early Wednesday morning near the Bel Air section of Los Angeles. The fire grew to 150 acres by late Wednesday morning, and 200 firefighters are on the seen battling the blaze. The fire prompted the closure of the busy 405 highway, and is threatening the Getty Center Art Museum.

"You can only imagine the impact this weather is having on the flaming front," David Richardson, the Los Angeles County deputy fire chief, told the LA Times. "This wind is what's being dealt with at this point in time. It makes things very ... difficult because we're chasing the fire — we're chasing the fire trying to get ahead of it, trying to get in front to provide structure defense."

California has been ravaged by wildfires in recent months. In October, a series of fires destroyed communities in Northern California's Napa and Sonoma counties in what is considered the deadliest wildfire in the state's history. Experts said at the time that it would take years for the state to recover.

Here's a map of the location of the current fires:

A number of wildfires broke out in the Los Angeles area on Monday and Tuesday — and they're showing no signs of stopping. Read Full Story