Where to Find Ventura County Emergency Updates on Thomas Fire in Ventura County

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The Thomas Fire as seen from the Conejo Valley (Photo Credit: L. David Irete).

The Thomas Fire as seen from the Conejo Valley (Photo Credit: L. David Irete).

The Thomas Fire was first reported on Monday night around 6:30 p.m. in Santa Paula, in the vicinity of Steckel Park and Thomas Aquinas College near the 150 (Ojai Road). Due to gale force Santa Ana winds, the fire spread quickly overnight to over 55,000 acres in less than 24 hours in Santa Paula, Ojai and Ventura.

As of Tuesday night, December 5, the "Thomas Fire" has burned over 150 structures, including the Hawaiian Village Apartments in Ventura

Governor Brown declared a state of emergency in Ventura County today as a result of the fire. (He also issued an emergency proclamation today for the Creek and Rye fires in Los Angeles County.) 

Text the United Way of Ventura County at UWVC to 41444 to donate to Thomas Fire victims; 100% of the donations will go directly to those affected by the fires.

Schools have been closed Tuesday in Ventura County and on Wednesday the following schools are slated for closure due to the wildfires:

  • CSU Channel Islands
  • Nearly all K-12 schools in Ventura County, including Conejo Valley USD, Fillmore USD, Moorpark USD, Ojai USD, Pleasant Valley SD, Santa Paula USD, Ventura USD, Simi Valley USD, Oxnard Elementary and Union High School Districts and other schools listed at www.vcoe.org.
  • UPDATE: The following districts will be closed the rest of the week (12/7-12/8): Briggs Elementary School District, Hueneme Elementary School District, Mesa Union Elementary SD, Mupu Elementary SD, Ocean View Elementary SD, Ojai USD, Oxnard Elementary SD, Oxnard Union HS District, Pleasant Valley SD, Rio Elementary SD, Santa Clara Elementary SD, Ventura USD.
  • UPDATE: As of 2:30PM 12/6, school is planned for Simi Valley and Conejo Valley Unified School Districts.

Here's where to go for updates:

First and foremost, visit readyventuracounty.org for updates, mandatory evacuation areas, voluntary evacuations, evacuation shelters, school closures, road closures and other information.

If you are a Twitter user, the Ventura County Fire Department Public Information Officer provides periodic updates via Tweets at twitter.com/VCFD_PIO. The VCFD Twitter page also provides updates and some useful "Retweets" from other sources at twitter.com/VCFD.

Local area newspaper sites have Twitter and Facebook feeds that may come in handy:

Among TV news sites, I've found ABC 7 to have some great coverage abc7.com.

Subscribe to VC Alert, a free serviced utilized by all 10 cities in Ventura County as well as unincorporated areas for emergency updates. Text VCALERT to 313131 to register.

Cal Fire posts updates on its site at www.fire.ca.gov/current_incidents.

The Murals of Santa Paula Provide a Pictorial History of the City

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The City of Santa Paula is the geographical center of Ventura County, located in the rich agricultural Santa Clara River Valley. The city is surrounded by rolling hills and rugged mountain peaks in addition to orange, lemon and avocado groves. Santa Paula is often referred to as the "Citrus Capital of the World."

Santa Paula covers an area of 4.7 square miles and at the date of the 2010 U.S. census had a population of 29,321. It is the 7th largest (and inversely 4th smallest) city in Ventura County in terms of population. The city was incorporated on April 22, 1902.

Something unique to see while in Santa Paula is a series of nine murals that depict various historical aspects of the city, including its first inhabitants, the Chumash, the discovery of oil, its Latino culture, founding of the Santa Paula Airport, local farming and more. Learn more at this link and by visiting www.santapaulamurals.org.

Click this link for other things to do in Santa Paula!

Live Beehive on Display at the Museum of Ventura County Agriculture Museum

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The Museum of Ventura County Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula contains nearly a thousand vintage farm items ranging from tractors, machines and tools as well as rotating art and photo exhibits as well as educational sessions for all ages. One other unique aspect of the Agriculture Museum is this live beehive exhibit, which bees can access through the exterior wall. Fascinating to see in person! This is a permanent display at the museum.

General public admission to the Agriculture Museum (as of February 2015) is $5 adults, $3 seniors, students and AAA members and $1 for children 6-17. Kids 5 and under are free. Open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (changing to Fri-Sun 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 3/1/15)

For more information, visit the Museum of Ventura County website at www.venturamuseum.org or call 805.653.0323.

Glen Tavern Inn in Santa Paula is on National Register of Historic Places

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Built in 1911, the Glen Tavern Hotel is Ventura County Historical Landmark No. 65 and was named to the National Register of Historic Places in September 1984. The Glen Tavern is a Craftsman/English Tudor style hotel with original dark wood paneling, some original light fixtures, stone fireplace and Craftsman columns.

Located at 134 N. Mill Street in Santa Paula, The Glen Tavern is the only national historic landmark in Ventura County you can actually stay overnight in. The 3rd floor of the hotel was once a gambling parlor and um, house of ill-repute. And stars like John Wayne, Carol Lombard, Harry Houdini and Steve McQueen stayed at the Inn.

There are 36 guest rooms and suites available in this historic hotel, which is walking distance or a short drive to a number of other attractions and points of interest, including:

Enzo's Italian Restaurant is open Tuesday through Sunday for dinner at the Glen Tavern Inn.

Visit www.glentavern.com to learn more and to book a room!

The Pumpkin Chucker at the Pumpkin Patch at Faulkner Farm in Santa Paula

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A trebuchet is a catapult that works by using the energy of a raised counterweight to throw a projectile. It was popular in medieval times for hurling large stones and missiles. It became obsolete in the 15th century with the introduction of gunpowder.

However, in recent years, the Pumpkin Chucker at the Faulkner Farm Pumpkin Patch in Santa Paula has brought this ancient projectile thrower back into the spotlight!

For $5 (or 3 for $10), visitors to the pumpkin patch can select a small pumpkin that is carefully placed into a launch position on the Pumpkin Chucker, ring the Pumpkin Chucker bell, then pull the rope that triggers a 500 lb counterweight that projects the pumpkin 200 feet away towards a target.

In our recent visit, I was surprised to experience about a 45 minute wait for the Pumpkin Chucker! But that didn't seem to bother anyone, as everyone enjoyed watching the airborne pumpkins and cheering as they came close to the target. It was so popular in fact that I think this could be a great year-round business opportunity...flinging pumpkins, watermelons, canteloupes and other worthy produce!

Pumpkin commencing its 200 foot flight from the Pumpkin Chucker

The Faulkner Farm Pumpkin Patch, run by the Rotary Club of Santa Paula since 2007, is typically open on weekends in October each year. Learn more at www.faulknerfarmpumpkinpatch.com.

Pumpkin Chucker target area and post-flight remnants of pumpkins at Faulkner Farm

2013 Amgen Tour of California Route Passes Through Ventura County on May 15th

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2013 Amgen Tour of California Route Announced

For the First Time, America’s Greatest Cycling Race Will Travel South to North, Beginning in Escondido and Crossing Beaches, Deserts, Mountains, Golden Gate Bridge

Changing direction for the first time in its eight-year history from south to north, America’s largest and most prestigious professional cycling stage race, the 2013 Amgen Tour of California, will bring riders and spectators first-time destinations, unprecedented climbs and demanding sprints on the approximately 750-mile course.

Amgen returns as the title sponsor for the heralded 8-stage race, set for May 12 to 19, 2013. Beginning with a circuit in Escondido, the route will run through 13 official host cities and include a first-time finish at the top of Mount Diablo, the 3,864-foot peak in the San Francisco Bay area. The race’s last stage will begin along the San Francisco Bay and continue across the Golden Gate Bridge, where a rolling traffic break will give cyclists uninterrupted access for the six-minute crossing.

Two new cities join the race route roster: Greater Palm Springs and Murrieta will host Stage 2, which will include an intense finish up the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, one of the toughest climbs anywhere with an 1,880-foot elevation gain in the last four miles. Two other firsts: Escondido and Santa Rosa will become the first cities in race history to have hosted both an overall start and an overall finish.

As one of the most anticipated professional cycling races on the international calendar, the Amgen Tour of California draws top cyclists from the ranks of Olympic medalists, Tour de France competitors and world champions including BMC Racing Team’s current world road champion Philippe Gilbert.

The 2013 Amgen Tour of California will feature the following highlights (route and start times are subject to change):

Stage 1: Sunday, May 12, 11:15 am start – Escondido, Stage Length 104.3 miles

Stage 2: Monday, May 13, 10:20 am start – Murrieta to Greater Palm Springs (126.1 miles) 

Stage 3: Tuesday, May 14 11:20 am start – Palmdale to Santa Clarita (Finishes at Magic Mountain Parkway) (111.8 miles) 

Stage 4: Wednesday, May 15 12:35 pm start – Santa Clarita to Santa Barbara (84.7 miles)

Stage 4 is largely through Ventura Co

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Horace Bristol 1930s Photos at Santa Paula Agriculture Museum March 3 to May 20

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Horace Bristol’s Compelling 1930s Photographs On Exhibition At Agriculture Museum

More than two dozen images by famed LIFE Magazine photojournalist Horace Bristol are on exhibition March 3 through May 20 at the Museum of Ventura County Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula. Horace Bristol Photographs: Selections From the 1930s features not only work from his best known Grapes of Wrath series, but other selections from the 1930s period, including such diverse images as a never before exhibited aerial photograph of a Santa Paula orange orchard, and a migrant child pitting apricots. The exhibition is in the Agriculture Museum’s Reiter Affiliated Companies Visitors Center and Calavo Hall.

 

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