Firefighters Stage Controlled Burn

The sky was black in parts of the Conejo Valley on Thursday, as smoke from a controlled burn of 1,350 acres of brush filled the sky--and the blaze briefly burned out of control.

The fire was set about 10:30 a.m. by fire personnel from Ventura and Los Angeles counties to help prevent future blazes in the area and to serve as a joint training exercise. About 150 personnel participated.

But late in the day, three spot fires unexpectedly spread within the Agoura site, blackening 150 acres before it was stopped, fire officials said.

The press office of the Ventura County Fire Department was flooded with calls during the burn from people who saw the plumes of smoke swirl overhead, drifting toward the Pacific Ocean.

“We can smell it,” said Tyler Morton, an attendant at the Chevron gas station at Agoura and Lakeview Canyon roads in Westlake Village. “We can really see a lot of smoke in the sky and some ashes flying around.”

While residents from neighboring cities worried about the smoke, firefighters on the front lines in Cheeseboro Canyon watched with excitement.

“It’s doing good,” said Sandi Wells, public information officer for the Ventura County Fire Department, as she drove up to the top of the canyon ridgeline to meet up with other fire officials.

Wells said the fire is part of the natural cycle of the environment, burning away dead brush to make room for new growth. Since 1993, Cheeseboro Canyon has been the site of six controlled burns, keeping the vegetation from growing out of hand.

“You can see if a fire should come through this corridor, how it would affect the communities,” Wells said, pointing to houses in Oak Park and Agoura.

Other officials were on hand to monitor the wildlife during the fire.