CA Thomas Fire Now Seven Times The Size Of San Francisco

VENTURA COUNTY, CA -- A fire that started on Dec. 4 in Southern California grew to 234,200 acres on Tuesday, sending smoke hundreds of miles away as thousands of people remain evacuated from their homes. The Thomas Fire was just 20 percent contained as of Tuesday morning.

The fire, which was one of six major wildfires to spark last week, killed one woman in Ventura County, destroyed 794 structures and damaged 187 others buildings.

The National Weather Service said on Twitter that the smoke from the Thomas Fire could be seen in Eureka, more than 600 miles away from where the fire originally began in Santa Paula, California.

See the latest evacuation map here.

As more than 6,000 personnel work to contain the fire, 18,000 structures remained threatened, according to Cal Fire.

Fueled by strong Santa Ana winds, firefighters from throughout the U.S. have been sent to the region to battle the fifth largest wildfire in modern California history. Fire officials said it was seven times the size of San Francisco.

-- Photo: In this photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, county fire hand crew member Nikolas Abele keeps an eye on a hillside for any stray embers during a firing operation in Santa Monica Canyon in Carpinteria, Calif., Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. (Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP)

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