Camarillo parish serves as refuge amid damaging wildfire
A Catholic parish in Ventura County, California, has been serving as an evacuation shelter in recent days as a major wildfire continues to burn nearby, destroying homes and displacing community members.
The blaze, dubbed the Mountain Fire, erupted last week amid high winds and dry, fire-prone conditions. According to the local VC Star newspaper, the fire has burned roughly 32 square miles, destroyed dozens of homes, sent residents to the hospital, and forced widespread evacuations.
An army of some 2,800 fire personnel had the conflagration about one-third contained as of Monday morning. Conditions are expected to worsen Tuesday, with dry and gusty conditions forecasted before a cooldown and possible showers later in the week.