Topanga Canyon Boulevard is closing until this evening amid wildfire warnings. Here's why

Published Dec 18, 2024 10:03 AM

A wildfire is raging in the distance above hilly terrain, filling the hazy sky with smoke. A home can be seen in the forefront, not too far from the flames.

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Topline:

Topanga Canyon Boulevard is closed until 6 p.m. Wednesday, with only residents and local businesses allowed to travel through. Officials say it’s because if a wildfire did break out in the area, it would be difficult to evacuate the roughly 8,000 residents through the two-lane, high-traffic commuter route.

Why it's closed: Jennifer Seetoo, Los Angeles Sheriff's Department captain of the Malibu/Lost Hills Station, told LAist that the closure may be inconvenient for those who rely on the road, but it could save lives when we have “hellacious” winds that may cast embers miles in front of a fire.

“One major road in and out of Topanga — we want to make sure that we keep it residents only to make sure that we can evacuate as [fast] as we can,” she said.

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The backstory: These preparedness closures are new — it became a best practice after the devastating 2018 Woolsey Fire.

Kevin McGowan, the director of L.A. County’s Office of Emergency Management, told LAist part of the fire’s after-action response was identifying high-risk areas that have a larger population, just like Topanga Canyon. He added that officials don’t take these decisions lightly.

“ Fires move with more severity, and more speed, and they have caused worse outcomes than we've seen in those years past,” he said. “So the response in this preparedness phase had to change to meet that moment.”

What's next: The closures come during red flag warnings, which Seetoo said we see approximately nine days out of the year. If wet weather arrives, we could also see closures for flooding or landslides.