New wildfire erupts in Southern California ahead of Trump visit

Five new fires have broken out in Southern California ahead of Donald Trump’s state visit.

Blazes — Laguna, Sepulveda, Gibbel, Gilman and Border 2 — entered Los Angeles, San Diego, Ventura and Riverside counties on Thursday.

Meanwhile, firefighters have made progress in bringing the Hughes fire to 10,000 hectares in Los Angeles, 36% since it broke out on Wednesday.

Wildfires have ravaged the state in recent weeks, with the Palisades and Eaton burning a combined 37,000 acres and killing at least 28 people.

Here are some details on the latest wildfires, based on updates from California Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire):

• Border 2 fire 800 acres open in San Diego. Evacuation orders are currently in place
• Friends of Ventura Blaze has 94 hectares and is 70% under control
• The Sepulveda fire in Los Angeles is 45 hectares and 60% contained. In an update posted on X, the Los Angeles Fire Department said the blaze had been stopped from spreading and evacuation orders had been lifted.
• The Liver Fire broke out in River County, covering 15 acres. Fire crews managed to get the fire out
• A wildfire in San Diego’s Gilman is two acres in size, but the blaze’s progress has stalled

Trump is set to visit Los Angeles on Friday to survey the damage from firefighters.

The newly inaugurated president has been critical of the fire response and has threatened to withhold federal aid if California changes the way it manages water supplies.

California governor Gavin NewSom has criticized and repeatedly stated that the state had water problems because he was diverting supplies to save a small fish called a smelt.

If the US media were to cut the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding, Trump said: “I would have to do that. Sometimes that’s the only thing you can do. California is a great example of that.

“If you ask people, they don’t want sanctuary cities, but Gavin Newsh does. And politicians on the left do.

Brian Rice, president of the California Professional Firefighters Association, told the BBC that Trump has not denied federal aid to the state.

“The most important focus we’ve made is getting federal aid in California when people have lost their lives, their homes,” he said.

“In the history of this country, federal disaster aid has never been tied to if you do this, you get that. That’s an ongoing debate, it’s never happened before.”

The Hughes Fire — the state’s third-largest blaze after the Palisades and Eaton Fires — forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people after it erupted Wednesday.

According to Cal Fire, crews made progress on the fast-moving fire Thursday.

Los Angeles is currently a fire danger zone with strong winds, according to BBC Weather.

Rain is expected in the county this weekend, as well as snow in the mountains of Southern California.