Mandatory evacuations for more than 7,500 people in the Los Angeles area are in place after a wildfire began late Thursday before quickly spreading to cover more than 8,000 acres overnight. The Maria Fire is the latest addition to California’s busy 2019 fire season.
As of Friday morning, the fire was completely uncontained. Authorities said late Thursday that about 1,800 structures had been threatened by the wildfire and that efforts to contain the fire had been complicated by a civilian drone.
“Earlier this evening, our firefighting aerial efforts were hampered by someone flying an unmanned aerial system in the area,” said Ventura County Sheriff Bill Ayub. “This created quite a dangerous situation. Not only is it illegal, but it hampers our firefighting efforts.”
Read this story now for free
To continue reading, sign up for our newsletter and get unlimited access to WABE.org
You can select your preferences for news and local content. We will never share your email address. Learn how your newsletter sign-up will support WABE and Public Media
