Super dry grasses, aided by troublesome terrain and wind, continue to fuel the Lake Fire burning in Santa Barbara County, which had topped 20,000 acres as of Monday morning.
Gathered for the morning briefing before heading to the fire near Los Olivos, hundreds of firefighters received reports about the fire’s status, weather and more.
The Lake Fire ignited Friday near Zaca Lake and quickly grew, leading to road closures along with evacuation orders and warnings.
As of Monday morning, the fire had blackened 20,320 acres, with containment at 8%.
The priority for Monday’s efforts will focus on Figueroa Mountain Road and southern areas of the fire where residential communities sit. Other efforts will involve setting back fires and creating bulldozer lines to strengthen containment.
A slop-over occurred Sunday on Figueroa Mountain Road — the fire crossed a natural barrier expected to confine the flames — but was quickly attacked and has continued to hold, according to Tom Himmelrich, night operations leader.
Overnight, the Figueroa Mountain weather station noted temperatures in the upper 80s and lower 90s, with humidity being 12% to 22%, according to Ryan Walbrun, incident meteorologist.
As they stood under a cool dense marine layer at the fire camp based at the Santa Maria rodeo grounds, firefighters were reminded they would encounter very different weather at the fire’s site, which remained under an excessive heat warning.
“As you change elevation every couple hundred feet, things change dramatically so really pay attention to that,” Walbrun said.
Wind and troublesome terrain often push fires in Santa Barbara County, but aren’t the primary driver for the Lake Fire, according to Dan Michael, fire behavior trainee.
He noted the fire behavior advisory issued for the Lake Fire applies to other incidents across California.
“Those fire fuels, there’s a ton of them, and they’ve been baking like they’re in an oven especially for the last week, especially above where the marine layer sits,” Michael added.
Nighttime won’t calm the fire’s behavior.
“The night is when you’re going to see the most fire behavior. It’s going to be warm. It’s going to be dry,” Michael said.
The unified command includes the U.S. Forest Service, Cal Fire and Santa Barbara County.
“I think we’re set up for success for sure today,” said Anthony Stornetta from Santa Barbara Fire Department and one of the unified commanders.
The force fighting the fire has grown to 1,162 people, with trailers filled with support services and firefighting vehicles.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation.
Evacuation Orders and Warnings for Lake Fire
On Sunday night, an evacuation order was issued for all areas from Figueroa Mountain Road at Junction Camp (including Tunnel Road) to the Chamberlin Ranch.
The order also covers all areas from Zaca Lake Road at Foxen Canyon Road north to the Sisquoc River, including east of Foxen Canyon Road to the 9000 block.
This area previously was included in an evacuation warning before officials upgraded it to an order.
There is also an evacuation order in effect for an area spanning from the Grass Mountain Trailhead to the neighborhood within Sawmill Basin, including Tunnel Road and the Figueroa Campground.
Late Sunday afternoon, the Sheriff’s Office issued a new evacuation warning for the areas north of Calzada Avenue, east of East Oak Trail Road, west of Happy Canyon, and south of the Sisquoc River.
An earlier evacuation warning for areas north of Zaca Lake Road, east of Foxen Canyon Road, and from the 9000 block and north to the Sisquoc River (including Rancho Sisquoc) remained in effect.
Residents can utilize the Santa Barbara County 2024 Lake Fire Incident Map to type in their address to see if their property falls within the highlighted areas.
More fire-related information, including road closures, evacuation shelters and incident maps, are available on the county’s readysbc.org website.
Road Closures
- Happy Canyon Road: Closed at forest boundary due to Lake Fire.
- Foxen Canyon Road: Closed at Zaca Station Road and Tepusquet Road due to Lake Fire.
- Figueroa Mountain Road: Closed at Midland School due ot Lake Fire.
- Old San Marcos Road: Closed due to Caltrans closure of Highway 154.
