A new fire breaks out in Southern California as high winds threaten progress

Ayana Archie | January 14, 2025

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A new fire broke out in Southern California on Monday night, adding to the string of fires there in the past week that has left more than 20 people dead and hundreds of thousands under evacuation orders.

The California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire, reported that the Auto Fire had burned 56 acres in Ventura County as of about 5 a.m. ET Tuesday. A mandatory evacuation has been issued in connection with the fire.

Late Monday night, the Ventura County fire department said the fire was moderately spreading, and about 75 firefighters were on the scene.

Ventura County is about 100 miles west of Los Angeles County, where authorities are still working to contain three major fires: Hurst, Palisades and Eaton.

The newest blaze came as firefighters struggled to control other blazes that broke out a week ago across Los Angeles County. The two largest fires, the Palisades and Eaton fires, remained largely uncontained. The Hurst Fire north of Los Angeles was 97% contained, Cal Fire said.

The National Weather Service forecasted high winds up to 70 miles per hour in Los Angeles and Ventura counties through Wednesday, which could create new fires and exacerbate current ones.

“Winds are expected to oscillate in magnitude over the next 48, hours but the environment is expected to be remain extremely dangerous, favorable to very rapid-fire growth if a fire does start,” the agency said.

Late Monday night, the deaths of 21 people had been confirmed: 16 from the Eaton Fire and five from the Palisades Fire, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s office said. As of Sunday evening, the LA County Medical Examiner was investigating 24 deaths.