The Gifford Fire in Southern California has consumed over 80,000 acres and forced parts of two counties to be evacuated. The fire, located on Highway 166 northwest of Santa Maria, California, was burning on both sides of the highway, with more active spread on the south side of the road, according to Cal Fire.

Since it started on Friday afternoon, the Gifford Fire -- which is situated within the Los Padres National Forest in Solvang, California -- has burned 72,460 acres and has only reached 7% containment, prompting evacuation orders for those in the Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, officials said.

The Gifford Fire in central California has expanded to become one of the state's largest active wildfires, burning over 72,000 acres and prompting widespread evacuation orders. Newsweek contacted Cal Fire for comment via email outside of standard working hours on Tuesday.