The Gifford Fire in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties has officially become the largest fire in California this year.

A fast-growing brush fire is forcing thousands of people to evacuate in a mountainous area north of Los Angeles.

The fire is burning just south of Lake Piru, a reservoir in the Los Padres National Forest. It is close by Lake Castaic, a popular recreation area burned by the Hughes Fire in January. That fire ...