Wildfires in Santa Cruz, San Mateo Counties explode to 40,000 acres
Overnight, several homes were destroyed in the town of Bonny Doon.
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- The CZU Lightning Complex fires exploded in size to 40,000 acres in Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties. At least 20 structures have been destroyed and 8,000 are threatened. The fire is zero percent contained.
More evacuations are expected. At press conference Thursday morning, officials with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office said people should be prepared to leave at a moment's notice.
"With this fire, you just don't know how things are going to go," said Deputy Chief Chris Clark. "We operate under the best intelligence that Cal Fire provides based on how this fire is acting. If an order goes out, it's for good reason, and you need to leave."
Overnight, several homes were destroyed in the town of Bonny Doon. The houses were on Empire Grade Road.
INTERACTIVE MAP: Track wildfires across Bay Area, other parts of California
There are mandatory evacuations from Davenport south to the Santa Cruz city limits. The evacuation zone also includes neighborhoods the northern part of the county, such as Boulder Creek, Bonny Doon and North Coast. Residents of Ben Lomand and Lompico were ordered to evacuate last night.
On the Peninsula, the fires have forced evacuations across San Mateo County. The orders include the communities of Loma Mar, Dearborn Park, Butano State Park, Pescadero Creek County Park and surrounding areas.
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