Updated Jan 10, 2025 - Energy & Climate

Kenneth Fire threatens 2 SoCal counties, forces NFL to move Vikings-Rams game

Rebecca Falconer

Traffic backs up as residents evacuate ahead of the Kenneth Fire on January 09, 2025 in Calabasas, California. — Traffic backs up as residents evacuate ahead of the Kenneth Fire on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 in Calabasas, California. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

A new Los Angeles County wildfire ignited and exploded in size in West Hills near homes in the Calabasas and Hidden Hills areas, triggering more mandatory evacuation orders on Thursday.

State of play: The Kenneth Fire quickly spread into Ventura County after starting around 3:30pm in L.A., prompting the NFL to move the L.A. Rams' wild-card playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings to Arizona. A Ventura County fire official told KNBC Thursday evening, "Forward progress of the fire has been stopped and we've contained it to only 960 acres."

Firefighters from Los Angeles and Ventura counties have been tackling the blaze, which was still at 0% containment. However, the official said it wasn't anticipated to grow significantly in size.
A Los Angeles Police Department official told NewsNation police have opened an arson investigation into the Kenneth Fire and taken one person into custody in relation to the probe.

The big picture: Firefighters have been tackling multiple wildfires in Southern California since Tuesday during critical fire weather, driven by powerful Santa Ana winds that were increasing again on Thursday evening.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

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Kenneth Fire threatens 2 SoCal counties, forces NFL to move Vikings-Rams game

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