The Mountain fire broke out Wednesday morning. By Thursday afternoon, the blaze had burned more than 20,000 acres.

At least three other significant brush fires have ignited on the hilly terrain of Ventura County's South Mountain since 2019.

Multiple homes in Camarillo and Moorpark have been destroyed and more than 14,000 acres have burned as the Mountain Fire remains at 0% containment in Ventura County.

Menlo Park Fire Chief Mark Lorenzen, who spent a decade as the chief in Ventura County, said firefighters prioritize evacuations before defending structures. It used to be that there was more time to extinguish a fire before it became life-threatening, he said.

Driven by powerful Santa Ana winds, the Mountain Fire in Ventura County forced more than 10,000 people to flee their homes as it exploded by thousands of acres, injuring people and destroying homes in its path.

It has burned 20,640.1 acres after being active for three days, an increase of ten acres since the last update. By Saturday afternoon, a crew of 2,999 firefighters effectively contained 17% of the fire.

A Ventura County resident whose home was destroyed by the Mountain Fire described her chaotic escape from the blaze with her husband and six pets. Santa Paula resident Dawn DeLeon told KABC/ABC7 Los Angeles: “We thought we were ok,

Dozens of Ventura County schools closed this week due to the destructive Mountain Fire that tore through thousands of acres. Here is a full list of the closures.

The Mountain Fire destroyed 132 structures, including many homes, in the Camarillo and Moorpark areas of Ventura County. See a wildfire update.