Firefighters responded Sunday to a fire in and around a large homeless encampment along southbound Highway 101 in Goleta.
The blaze on the south side of the freeway, west of Glen Annie/Storke Road, was reported at about 9:20 a.m., and smoke was visible throughout the Goleta Valley.
Several elaborate trash-filled homeless encampments are visible in the area north of Ellwood Station Road, between the freeway and the railroad tracks.
The fire charred parts of one encampment, and spread to nearby vegetation and trees, said Capt. Daniel Bertucelli of the Santa Barbara County Fire Department.
It took firefighters about 30 minutes to fully contain the blaze, which blackened an area roughly 100 by 100 feet, Bertucellli said.
Crews were expected to remain on scene for at least an hour doing mop-up.
No injuries were reported and no structures were threatened.
Cause of the fire remained under investigation.
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.



