The Madre Fire near the Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo County lines east of Santa Maria grew overnight to more than 35,000 acres.
The fire forced the closure of Highway 166 between the communities of Santa Maria and Cuyama. Evacuation orders have been issued for some areas of San Luis Obispo County threatened by the blaze.
The fire is moving to the east/northeast in a sparsely populated area. Parts of Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties had smoky skies on Wednesday night.
More than 200 firefighters and seven air tankers are working on the fire as of midday Thursday. It started around 1 p.m. on Wednesday, and the cause is under investigation.
