By Katie Mettler, Andrew Freedman, Lateshia Beachum and Michael Brice-Saddler for the Washington Post – Oct. 30, 2019 at 5:31 p.m.
As whipping winds exacerbate raging wildfires across California on Wednesday, a new brush fire in the southern part of the state triggered mandatory evacuation orders in the area surrounding the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Ventura County.
The blaze, dubbed the Easy Fire, temporarily encircled the pavilion that houses Reagan’s Air Force One, which flew him to 26 countries, said John Heubusch, executive director of the Reagan Library. But firefighters were able to keep the fire at bay despite gusts that reached upward of 50 miles per hour, leaving scorched hillsides in its wake.
“The fire literally ringed the Reagan Library — the worst is behind us now, for sure, but it was a pretty dangerous situation,” Heubusch said, adding he hopes to reopen the museum Thursday. “It came right up against the Air Force One Pavilion.”
The Easy Fire began around 6 a.m. on hillsides above Simi Valley, and it rapidly spread to nearly 1,300 acres in just a few hours, triggering evacuation orders that forced 26,000 residents from their homes. The blaze is spreading amid dangerous weather, with humidity plunging into the single digits as winds gust above hurricane force. Simi Valley is about 40 miles from downtown Los Angeles.
“Unfortunately it was the worst time it could happen; 40 mile an hour sustained winds and fuels that were ripe and ready to carry fire,” Ventura County Fire Chief Mark Lorenzen said during a news conference.
“Fortunately for us and the community, we were prepared,” he added.
Large swaths of the state remained under “red flag” warnings Wednesday — indicating that bone-dry conditions paired with strong winds created large areas at high risk for dangerous wildfires. The Storm Prediction Center warned again of “extremely critical fire weather” throughout Southern California. Parts of Northern California, including the North Bay mountains, were expected to see “widespread critical fire weather.”
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