Simi Valley wildfire grows to 1,300 acres, local firefighters head south to assist

UPDATE (10:30 a.m.) - CAL FIRE says the Easy Fire is now 1,300 acres and 5 percent contained.
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UPDATE (8:15 a.m.) - Ventura County Fire officials say the Easy Fire has quickly consumed more than 400 acres Wednesday morning due to strong Santa Ana winds pushing the flames.

The fire is moving toward the Moorpark Freeway (Highway 23), prompting the closure of the highway in both direction plus other various road closures.

Mandatory evacuations have been issued. Shelters are being established in the Thousand Oaks area.

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UPDATE (8:00 a.m.) - Central Coast firefighters are heading down to the Simi Valley to help with a fast-moving and wind-driven wildfire that broke out Wednesday morning.

Five engines from Cal Fire SLO will join hundreds of firefighters who are already battling the blaze named the Easy Fire.

Santa Barbara County Fire Department is also sending resources to Simi Valley to assist with the Easy Fire.

By 7:45 a.m., the Easy Fire has burned 200 acres. There is no containment.

Mandatory evacuations are in place for people living in the Simi Valley area.

The nearby Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is being protected by firefighters, according to a spokeswoman for the library.

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ORIGINAL STORY:
A new wildfire has erupted in Southern California as strong Santa Ana winds blow through the region.

Television images showed the Easy Fire burning before dawn Wednesday in the city of Simi Valley about 20 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles.

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is in the vicinity.

Ventura County officials tweeted that mandatory evacuations were ordered for the area where the brush fire is burning.