The student media organization of California State University Northridge

Daily Sundial

The student media organization of California State University Northridge

Daily Sundial

The student media organization of California State University Northridge

Daily Sundial

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Fires scorch Sylmar and Ventura County

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Los Angeles Fire Fighters are fighting a blaze hat erupted Tuesday morning due to Santa Ana winds and has already burned 11,000 acres in Sylmar.

Mass evacuations have been issued for residents who live in Little Tujunga Canyon.

“The good news is that there have been no reports of any loss of life,” LAFD Public Information Officer Brian Humphrey said. “Some structures have been damaged. We don’t know the exact number yet, those numbers come later.”

The fire started near a creek and is threatening homes along the 210 freeway. The winds also knocked down a tree that smashed through a car this morning at Valley Circle near Lazy J. Ranch Park. The driver’s condition is unknown.

CSUN student Brandon Bohning who is an 18-year-old business major smelled the fire last night and was driving into downtown Los Angeles this morning when he saw the Sylmar fire off the freeway.

“I sleep with the window open so right away I had a whiff of the smoke in the air,” Bohning said. “Once I realized that is was outside I quickly went on social media to figure out what it was. Praying for all families affected by the fire.”

Horse owners located in the Sylmar Valley were forced to evacuate themselves and their horses to the equine center at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, officials said.

According to the Daily News, an unconfirmed report has stated that as many as 30 horses may have been injured and some killed at a nearby ranch.

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Local residents wait with their horses as they enter the Pierce College Equestrian Center during the Southern California Wild Fires in Woodlands Hill, CA on December 5, 2017 Photo by Enrie Amezcua

This fire is occurring while fighters across Southern California are battling a blaze in Ventura County.

So far the fire in Ventura County has burned 50,000 acres and has forced 27,000 thousand people to evacuate. One person has been killed.

Both fires have affected CSUN students. 21-year-old child development major Amber Edemann and her family had to help evacuate her grandmother as the flames closed in.

“I went to my grandmas this morning and the air quality is horrible,” Edemann said. “You can barely see the freeway.”

Joanne Marquez, a 20-year-old public health major said her friends and family members have been evacuated due to the Ventura County fire. Marquez also said her breathing is being affected.

“Me and my fiancé both have asthma and it is very rare for both of us to bring our inhalers,” Marquez said. “I have a godfather and godmother who live and have a house in Santa Paula I used to go to a lot as a kid. We’re not sure what is about to happen this their house.”

The fire in Ventura County so far has destroyed more than 150 buildings. The fire has come within a quarter-mile from Ventura City Hall.

A third fire has emerged in the Santa Clarita Valley spanning over 1,000 acres and causing over 1,300 homes to be evacuated, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The fire broke out around 9:30 a.m. near the 25000 block of Rye Canyon Loop, according to ABC7.

According to the Santa Clarita emergency website, students from West Ranch High School and Rancho Pico Junior High were being evacuated to College of the Canyons.

Officials have stated that the fire is burning around 5,000 acres and is at five percent containment, but it is not currently spreading.

Earlier on Tuesday Los Angeles County Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Sheila Kuehl declared both the Rye Canyon fire and the Northridge Creek Fire a local emergency.

The statement reads as follows:

“Beginning on the morning of Dec. 5, conditions of disaster and extreme peril to the safety of persons and property arose as a result of the Creek Fire and the Rye Fire, which has created conditions that are beyond the control of local resources.”

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