Alta Fire Erupts in Antelope Valley

Los Angeles County firefighters responded Thursday afternoon to the Alta Fire, a wildfire that broke out near 230th Street West east of Neenach on the Los Angeles-Kern county line, according to CAL FIRE. The agency said the fire started at 1:06 p.m. on May 21 and grew to 335 acres in the Antelope Valley region. CAL FIRE listed the cause as under investigation and said the Los Angeles County Fire Department had jurisdiction over the incident. By 6:45 p.m. Thursday, CAL FIRE said all evacuation orders had been dropped and the fire remained at 334 acres. ### Where did the Alta Fire start, and how large did it get? CAL FIRE said the Alta Fire started near the block of 230th Street West, east of Neenach, at coordinates 34.7904 and -118.5278. The incident page placed the fire in Los Angeles County, near the Kern County line, in a sparsely populated stretch of the western Antelope Valley. By 2:40 p.m. Thursday, CAL FIRE reported the fire at 335 acres with 0% containment. (fire.ca.gov) The agency’s later update at 6:45 p.m. said the fire remained at 334 acres, a one-acre revision that can occur as crews refine mapping. ### Which agencies were handling the fire? The Los Angeles County Fire Department was the agency having jurisdiction, CAL FIRE said on its incident page. (fire.ca.gov) The 2:40 p.m. update also identified the Los Angeles County Fire Department in unified command, while the incident management team field said no team had been assigned. CAL FIRE’s public incident page showed air assets, evacuation layers and perimeter mapping attached to the response. (fire.ca.gov) The agency did not list any civilian injuries, firefighter injuries, destroyed structures or damaged structures in the update posted Thursday afternoon. ### Which evacuation zones were affected? CAL FIRE said evacuation warnings were issued Thursday afternoon for Los Angeles County zones LAC-E002, LAC-E006-A, LAC-E006-B, LAC-E006-C and LAC-E1641, along with Kern County zone KRN-152. (fire.ca.gov) The warning list appeared in the agency’s 2:40 p.m. incident update. By 6:45 p.m., CAL FIRE said all evacuation orders had been dropped. (fire.ca.gov) The agency’s main incident page did not list any remaining warning or order language in that evening update. ### How were residents told to track conditions? Los Angeles County’s emergency page directs residents to the Genasys protection map to check the status of evacuation zones during wildfires and other emergencies. (fire.ca.gov) The county also tells residents to use the LA County Public Works road closure map for local roads and Caltrans QuickMap for state-maintained roads. The same county page says residents can register for Alert LA County emergency notifications and can call 211 LA County for emergency preparedness information and referral services. (fire.ca.gov) Los Angeles County also lists its public safety social media accounts, including Ready LA County and the LA County Fire Department public information feed, as sources for updates. ### What remained unknown Thursday night? (lacounty.gov) CAL FIRE said Thursday that the cause of the Alta Fire was under investigation. The agency also had not assigned a separate incident management team as of the last update shown on the incident page. As of CAL FIRE’s 6:45 p.m. update on May 21, the next public milestone was further incident reporting on the Alta Fire page, where the agency posts acreage, evacuation and status changes. (lacounty.gov) Los Angeles County’s emergency page also remained available for zone, road and alert information tied to any renewed activity. (fire.ca.gov)