A wind-driven wildfire that prompted evacuations near Gorman exploded to more than 14,625 acres on Sunday.
The fire, called the Post Fire, was first reported Saturday just after 1:45 p.m. near Gorman School Road and Ralph’s Ranch Road, close to the southbound I-5 Freeway, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
The fire grew at an alarming rate, increasing to 2,000 hectares by 4:45 p.m., doubling to 4,400 hectares by 7:15 p.m., and to more than 12,000 hectares by Sunday morning.
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“The wind has been a major factor, along with the dry fuels and terrain,” said Craig Little with the LA County Fire Department. “That’s all a recipe for a very fast-moving flame.”
The fire was 2% contained by noon and was fanned by the wind. It pushed up to Hungry Valley Park.
More than 1,200 people have been evacuated in both the Hungry Valley State Vehicular Recreation Area and near Pyramid Lake. No evacuation centers have been established yet. Pyramid Lake is closed due to the threat of the post fire. Fire officials said structures are threatened and two have been damaged. No structures were destroyed.
An evacuation warning has been issued for areas south of Pyramid Lake between Old Ridge Route and the LA County line, including Paradise Ranch Estates. Residents there are advised to prepare to leave.
Late Sunday, California Highway Patrol officials closed southbound lanes near Gorman due to another grass fire sparking in the area. It has since reopened.
So far, one commercial building has been destroyed and about 50 homes are threatened as the flames continue to move towards Pyramid Lake, pushed by gusts of wind.
Before burning across two roads in the Gorman area, the fire burned through the yard of an auto shop, burning as many as 20 cars.
Firefighters are working to establish perimeter fire lines around the fireflakes as aircraft work to halt forward progress, but visibility is limited. Little said there was a joint effort among fire departments, including Los Angeles County Fire, Ventura, Kern County, Angeles National Forest and Cal-Fire, and that more than 1,100 firefighters were working the blaze.
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Wind gusts of up to 60 miles per hour were expected later on Sunday, prompting a red flag warning through Monday.
“The question is when the wind is high enough that the water droplet is probably not going to be effective. It’s going to drift,” Little said.
The fire brigade reported three minor injuries to two adults and one child, but the nature of those injuries remains unclear.
Video from the scene showed several vehicles destroyed by flames outside an auto shop and a McDonald’s in the area. People living nearby in the Canyon Country region took cellphone video late Saturday evening of the heavy smoke hanging over their homes as the fire continued to rage.
Late Saturday, the South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a smoke advisory for the Santa Clarita and Castaic areas due to unhealthy air quality caused by the fire. Smoke from the fire was expected to be pushed into the area by the wind.
More information about the Post Fire is available on the CalFire website.
