After several neighborhood evacuations Wednesday, a Santa Clarita resident described his North Fire evacuation experience as the fire’s containment reaches 25 percent.

A Santa Clarita resident described his North Fire Evacuation experience after several evacuations were authorized in a Valencia neighborhood Wednesday. 

The North Fire’s acreage was downgraded from 650 acres to 640 acres Thursday morning with 25 percent containment, according to Los Angeles County Fire Department officials. 

The fire was first reported to the L.A. County Fire Department (LACoFD) as one acre of brush at around 1:40 p.m. Wednesday on the 29000 block of The Old Road at Pitchess Detention Center, according to Fire officials. 

The fire engulfed 650 acres with 0 percent containment within six hours, prompting mandatory evacuations in several zones within Santa Clarita including West Hills Drive, Iron Village Drive, Tesoro Del Valle, Copper Hill Drive, Bellows Court, Via Patina and Platinum Court.

“It was just pandemonium on our street. We left the neighborhood in the flurry of other cars that were also leaving at the exact same time and headed to my aunt’s house,” Valencia resident Tim Smith said after being forced to evacuate. “We brought our pets. We had picture frames in duffle bags.”

See Related: North Fire Evacuation Assistance Available Through Red Cross, Animal Evacuation Available

Forward progress of the fire had been stopped at 650 acres with 25 percent containment and evacuations were lifted as of 10 a.m. Thursday, as confirmed by the City of Santa Clarita.

#NorthFire Safety Messagehttps://t.co/PRFWr3I4Jl pic.twitter.com/SjZnhQKniX

— L.A. County Fire Department (@LACoFDPIO) April 29, 2021

“Firefighters today are on the line working very hard to improve those containment numbers,” said Sean Ferguson, LACoFD Public Information Officer on Thursday. “However they are battling high temperatures, low relative humidity and at times dusty conditions.”

See Related: L.A. County Fire Department Advises Safeguarding Homes Upon Approaching Fire Season

Due to accurate infrared mapping flights conducted along the fire’s perimeter, the fire size had been downgraded from an earlier estimate to 640 acres as of Thursday morning, according to Fire officials. 

“The day was going normally and then almost instantly, it was chaos,” Smith said. “It first seemed like it was far away, but we soon realized it was very close and travelling at us very quickly.  At one point we could see flames on the hills right next to our house.”

The LACoFD is urging L.A. County residents to utilize their Ready! Set! Go! brochure to provide information on safeguarding homes as well as evacuation procedures. For more information, click here.

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