Southern California Wildfires Burn Over 26,000 Acres in One Week

Multiple fires broke out across Southern California over the past 48 hours. Nearly a dozen fires have burned more than 26,000 acres of terrain ranging from remote island chaparral to brushy foothills near neighborhoods. Six people have been injured and at least one home has burned. Officials have placed 45,000 people under evacuation orders.

Five fires of 1,000 acres or more are burning in Southern California. Officials described the level of activity as abnormal for May but not unprecedented. The largest fire is the 16,942-acre Santa Rosa Island fire in Channel Islands National Park. The 1,698-acre Sandy fire in Simi Valley accounts for most of the current evacuations.

An offshore wind event combined with extremely dry vegetation to ignite most of the fires. Officials said the region has received little precipitation since December. Human activity is the source of an estimated 95 percent of wildfires in Southern California. Officials said the Santa Rosa Island fire was started by a shipwrecked mariner using flares.

Statewide, 1,521 fires have burned 48,135 acres as of Wednesday.

This compares with a five-year average of 2,163 fires burning 23,867 acres at the same point in the season. Officials noted that fewer fires have started this year but more area has burned. They attributed the difference to increased fuel loads and faster-burning conditions.