By The Mountain Enterprise Team

“Heads up to your readers for strong winds starting Monday evening,” Neenach photographer and retired firefighter Jeff Zimmerman wrote Sunday, Dec. 3, saying “there is a Red Flag Warning through Thursday.” He dashed over to Ventura County and then to Los Angeles to document the blazes.

On Tuesday morning Al Fleming of Lake of the Woods nearly got…(please see below to view full stories and photographs)

Photo captions:

Ventura County blazes were driven by 50 mph winds. A reported 150 homes had been destroyed by Wednesday noon, Jeff Zimmerman reports. June Schmidt of Frazier Park reported her mother-in-law had to evacuate from Ojai, and another friend had to leave his home in Ventura.

Above: Al Fleming had to escape the freeway Tuesday when the Rye fire in Santa Clarita jumped the freeway and caused I-5 to be closed for more than five hours. Governor Brown declared a state of emergency.

Top: Aspen Helicopters’ Rick Throckmorton overlays the footprint of the Thomas fire northeast of Ventura on Wednesday.

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This is part of the December 8, 2017 online edition of The Mountain Enterprise.

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