On Wednesday, Nov. 6, the Ventura County Fire Department responded to a wildland fire that began north of the 118 highway near Somis. Declared the “Mountain Fire” by officials, the blaze quickly prompted widespread devastation, due to raging Santa Ana winds which reached up to 60 miles per hour.
The affected Ventura County areas were rich in dry brush and grass, causing the flames to spread at full tilt through the Somis community and regions south of the 118 highway. Early response crews prioritized the safety of evacuees and fire suppression.
The fire progressed rapidly and traveled southwest toward the north end of Camarillo. The blaze also established itself in the north end of South Mountain and south of the Santa Clara River.
Over a dozen evacuation orders were immediately deployed by VC Emergency, alerting an “immediate threat to life” status to residents and closing public road access.
Camarillo resident Lucas Primiciero was forced to evacuate on Nov. 6, as his residence fell within the ordered region. Alone at home with his sister, Primiciero had to swiftly track down necessary valuables, as well as find an evacuation route.
“It took an hour to go what would have taken five minutes to drive to leave my neighborhood,” Primiciero said regarding his evacuation experience. Fully acknowledging the crisis, he also claimed that traffic control was chaotic and caused problems for evacuees.
The morning of Thursday, Nov. 7, the Ventura County Fire Department deployed water-dropping helicopters to cover the area, alongside the aid of fire engines, crews and dozers with aerial supervision by fixed and rotor wing aircraft.
That same afternoon, Governor Gavin Newsom declared and signed a state of emergency in Ventura County to increase the amount of resources available to the crews already on the scene.
While the fire was near the Camarillo Heights area, there was no perimeter growth with containment beginning against the blaze. As crews took control of the area, 10 damage inspection crews began to assess the safety of the area, alongside the damage inflicted to the affected communities.
Nearly 24 hours later, Primiciero returned to his neighborhood, which was still burning, to save anything else him and his family could.
“My dad works for California Highway Patrol, and we were able to go back into the neighborhood during the fires and collect more belongings,” Primiciero added. “Our neighbor’s front yard started to ignite and we ran over to grab hoses and put them out. I didn’t have help from the firefighters at first, but they were busy with the other houses burning down.”
On Friday, Nov. 8, the conditions initially fueling the Mountain Fire had subsided substantially, with no major lateral movement of the blaze. This allowed the crews to focus on important areas northeast, where winds were expected to push towards in the upcoming forecast.
The following day, the progress made by the VCFD crews prompted the 118 highway open at 3 p.m. While road closures are still in effect for certain areas, this marked a turning point of progress toward reaching an end to the fire.
Currently, the Mountain Fire has reached 20,630 acres and is at 26% containment. A reported 2,918 personnel have been allocated to bring an end to the spread.
Ventura County has also received immense emergency assistance stemming from the state of emergency, with the latest announcement of resources on deck including 378 engines, 20 water tenders, 34 hand crews, 17 dozers and 14 helicopters.
With the strong Santa Ana winds playing a role in what fueled the initial spread, Incident Meteorologist Ryan Wahlbren with the National Weather Service provided insight on what crews can expect this week given the current trends.
Looking ahead, there is “a favorable change in the weather for Monday,” Wahlbren said. “A cold front moving into Northern California will probably produce some clouds…Tuesday will bring another round of those dry northeasterly winds… nothing nearly as strong as when the fire started.”
Within the next few days, damage inspection crews will review the affected areas and categorize homes as undamaged, damaged or destroyed, within the fire perimeter including a 300 foot extension. A newly released count for affected buildings was released at 75 undamaged structures, 25 damaged structures and 104 destroyed.
The damage ranges widely from shattered windows to possible unsoundness of roof structures. The most recent count comes from Damage Inspections Manager John Potkee in a press conference by the Ventura County Fire Department. Potkee described the process each structure goes through once assessed.
The teams will “inspect every building for damage caused by the fire,” Potkee said. “A full 360-degree walk around every structure to look for that damage…taking a picture of the structure that will be attached to that record.”
Cal Fire Mountain Incident Commander Barry Parker also spoke to the Ventura County community at this press conference, explaining plans his team has for repopulation for certain locations affected.
“Public safety is our main priority,” Parker said. “We are doing everything we can to get people back to a sense of normalcy…we want to support the rebuilding, the repopulation, but in order to do that we need to be safe, and we need to do it effectively.”
In light of the destruction, local charities and organizations have teamed up to provide shelters for families and animals affected. Evacuation centers for large animals are at the Earl Warren Showgrounds in Santa Barbara, and small animals at the Ventura County Animal Services in the Camarillo Airport.
Shelter for affected individuals is being provided at Padre Serra Parish as well as the Ventura Family YMCA as a temporary evacuation point.
Moorpark College students seeking food access and basic-need resources can visit Raider Central on campus Monday through Friday in the Student Service Annex (SS), 112. Hours of operation and more details about their assistance programs can be found here.
A drive-thru food pantry service will also be held this Saturday, Nov. 16, in Parking Lot E of Moorpark College, in association with Ruben Castro Charities and Food Share of Ventura County.
A public information hotline reserved for affected residents can be reached at (805) 465-6650 with additional information being released at VCEmergency.com.
