California wildfire advances on Malibu, one of three large blazes

Thomson Reuters

11/9/2018 11:13:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

(Reuters) — Three wind-whipped wildfires burned in California on Friday morning, including one that spurred the evacuation of 75,000 homes near a city that was still reeling from a mass shooting.

Voluntary evacuations of 75,000 homes were called for because of the Woolsey Fire that affected parts of Thousand Oaks, California, in Ventura County northwest of Los Angeles, the site of a shooting massacre this week.

A former U.S. Marine combat veteran opened fire in a bar packed with college students in the town on Wednesday night, killing 12 people and stunning a community with a reputation for safety.

An evacuation site was at capacity at the Thousand Oaks Teen Center, which had also served as a family assistance and reunification site following the shooting.

Several evacuation centers were issuing protective masks for citizens, Ventura County Emergency Services said. Many schools were closed in Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

Parts of the oceanside city of Malibu, about 30 miles west of downtown Los Angeles, were under evacuation orders, local media reported.

The Woolsey blaze also affected parts of Los Angeles County, where mandatory evacuation orders were in effect as of Friday morning south of U.S. Highway 101, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said.