Ventura County firefighters are battling a brush fire burning on South Mountain, in a rural area of the county outside of Somis.
The blaze was discovered just after 9:30 Saturday morning. It put up a thick column of smoke visible for miles.
It's a rural area, but some evacuations have been ordered. It covers the area north of La Loma Avenue, south of Los Angeles Avenue, east of Aggen Avenue and west of La Vista Avenue.
It's mostly agricultural land, and scattered ranches in the area impacted by evacuations.
More than 50 units aided by air tankers are battling the blaze. It was initially reported at three to four acres but has grown to about 300 acres.
There is a Red Flag Warning in effect for parts of Ventura County for what the National Weather Service describes as moderate to high Santa Ana winds.
The situation has prompted Southern California Edison to notify about 35,000 customers they may be affected by precautionary Public Safety Power Shutoffs. As of 11 a.m. Saturday, about 2300 have actually lost power.
