Smoke Blankets Los Angeles As SoCal Burns

SYLMAR, CA — A thick smoke from the 2,500-acre Creek Fire near Sylmar choked wide swaths of Los Angeles Tuesday morning, creating fog-like conditions on the Ventura (101) Freeway and blanketing communities all the way to the coast.

Traffic apps such as Waze, warned drivers of fog, but the problem was actually an eerie layer of smoke from the fast-moving fire that erupted overnight, destroying thousands of acres in just a few hours. The South Coast Air Quality Management District is warning residents to avoid the outdoors because of the unhealthy levels of smoke.

Residents across Los Angeles awoke to the massive plume of smoke. According to SQMD, the areas suffering from unhealthy air quality from the Creek Fire include all of the San Fernando Valley and northwest Los Angeles. Students at area schools are being kept indoors. The blaze is zero percent contained, and firefighters expect the Santa Ana wind conditions to worsen, peaking on Thursday.

Photo by Paige Austin