Canyon Fire in California near Lake Piru burns over 5,300 acres; all evacuation orders and warnings lifted

Firefighters have made good progress in the battle against the Canyon Fire, which continued burning in Ventura and Los Angeles counties on Friday after it broke out the day prior.

The vegetation fire, which is estimated to be 5,370 acres and 78% contained, erupted near Holser Canyon north of the Piru community, according to the Ventura County Fire Department. Overnight on Thursday, firefighters continued battling the fire, using water and retardant-dropping aircraft, as it spread east toward the Castaic area.

According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), the fire was at one point threatening power lines as well as the communities of Hasley Canyon and Hathaway Ranch.

Crews from the Ventura County Fire Department and the LA County Fire Department are operating in unified command. At its height, about 600 firefighters, and seven water-dropping helicopters, were assigned to the incident.

On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency approved a Fire Management Assistance Grant to help state officials fight the fire. The grant will provide federal funding for up to 75% of eligible firefighting costs.

"Thank you to the brave men and women who are fighting the Canyon Fire and other wildfires throughout the state," Newsom said. "This assistance will help our partners protect California communities."

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. 

 Evacuation orders and warnings

The fire's rapid growth prompted officials to issue evacuation orders and warnings in Ventura and LA counties on Thursday, but good progress that was made overnight and throughout the next day prompted officials to lift all orders and warnings at around 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

It is unclear exactly how many residents were affected by the orders and warnings.

For more detailed information on the evacuations in Ventura County, visit the Incident Map and Dashboard. For the LA County side, visit Cal Fire.