Thomas fire consumes about 360 square miles, becoming state’s 5th largest blaze

Firefighters kept a wall of flames from descending mountains into coastal neighborhoods after a huge and destructive Southern California wildfire exploded in size, becoming the fifth largest in state history.
Thousands remained under evacuation orders Monday, Dec. 11, as the fire churned west through foothill areas of Carpinteria and Montecito, seaside Santa Barbara County towns about 75 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Much of the fire’s rapid new growth occurred on the eastern and norther