A wildfire burning along the California coast grew to 1,500 acres overnight, prompting evacuation orders along the Big Sur coastline and closing portions of scenic Highway 1.

Photos posted on social media and by local news outlets showed flames engulfing hillsides surrounding the area’s famed Bixby Bridge. The Monterey County Sheriff’s Department issued evacuation orders to roughly 500 people in 7 square miles near the Central Coast.

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A wildfire burning along the California coast grew to 1,500 acres overnight, prompting evacuation orders along the Big Sur coastline and closing portions of scenic Highway 1.

Photos posted on social media and by local news outlets showed flames engulfing hillsides surrounding the area’s famed Bixby Bridge. The Monterey County Sheriff’s Department issued evacuation orders to roughly 500 people in 7 square miles near the Central Coast.

More than 120 fire personnel, including helicopter and air-tanker crews, have responded to the fire, and so far one structure—a yurt—has been damaged, Cal Fire spokeswoman Cecile Juliette said.

The fire was first reported around 7:30 p.m. Friday local time in the Palo Colorado Canyon area in Monterey County, according to Cal Fire officials. Winds and low humidity meant the fire remained “stubbornly active” overnight, officials with the National Weather Service said.

The blaze, dubbed the Colorado Fire, was only 5% contained as of Saturday morning, according to Cal Fire officials, but calmer winds over the weekend could help firefighters gain more control.

The Colorado Fire burns near Rocky Creek Bridge on Highway 1 near Big Sur; the fire was only 5% contained as of Saturday morning.

Photo: Nic Coury/Associated Press

Wildfires this time of year are rare in California, and a series of winter storms late last year brought rain and snow to swaths of the state along with hopes for lessened fire risk. But California’s punishing drought is acting like a “chronic illness,” weather officials tweeted, meaning recent rains and cold weather have done little to help prevent fires from developing.

“It is very unusual to have a fire of this size in January in this area, so close to the coast, especially considering we just had rain a few weeks ago,” Ms. Juliette said.

Cal Fire Assistant Chief George Nunez with Cal Fire’s San Benito-Monterey unit said the continuing drought has led to bigger loads of dead vegetation that’s primed to burn and less likely to be helped by even sizable rainfall.

“This is concerning because it did run on us fast,” Mr. Nunez said.

No rain is forecast in the area for the next week, National Weather Service officials said, so firefighters are watching wind patterns closely. “We’ve definitely got our head on a swivel,” Mr. Nunez said.

National Weather Service officials said changing winds Saturday could potentially push the fire inland. No rain is forecast for the area over the next week.

On Friday, Vice President Kamala Harris toured a wildfire burn scar in Southern California with Gov. Gavin Newsom before announcing $600 million in federal funding to help the state’s residents recover from a brutal fire season last year.

A California Highway Patrol officer on Highway 1 Friday; the continuing drought means recent rains and cold weather couldn’t do much to prevent fire.

Photo: Nic Coury/Associated Press

Write to Christine Mai-Duc at christine.maiduc@wsj.com