Firefighters lend a hand in Ventura

The Costa Mesa Fire Department continues to lend a hand to firefighters in Ventura County with a department battalion chief at the scene leading a group protecting homes in the area, officials said Thursday.

Battalion Chief Scott Broussard and a captain are leading a group of Orange County firefighters in a strike team — a four-truck unit assigned a specific mission during a wildfire — to protect structures at the Guiberson Fire in Ventura County. The men left Tuesday night, Broussard said.

The latest statistics from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection show the Guiberson Fire has scorched through more than 16,400 acres and is 40% contained. Two buildings have been destroyed and eight people have been injured, the CalFire website said. Damage was estimated at $3.4 million as of Thursday evening.

— Joseph Serna