More than 3.5 million additional acres across Southern California, including Los Angeles County, have been designated as fire hazard zones under updated maps released on Monday by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

Cal Fire said the maps are proactive, to be used in wildland-urban interface building standards for new construction and natural hazard real estate disclosures at the time of sale.

Cal Fire's new maps for Southern California added 3.5 million acres into fire-hazard zones, increasing the acreage in the highest hazard zone by 26%.