Firefighters responded Monday afternoon to two small vegetation fires burning in the Sycamore Creek area near the Santa Barbara Zoo.
Crews were dispatched shortly after 4 p.m. to the fire that was south of the railroad tracks near Ninos Drive, according to Battalion Chief Jim McCoy of the Santa Barbara City Fire Department.
The blaze blackened a roughly 50-by-50 foot area, McCoy told Noozhawk, with the flames burning into some eucalyptus trees.
Embers from the fire were picked up by gusty winds and blown into some palm trees on the zoo property and the nearby El Escorial residential complex, he added.
Extra engines, including a crew from the Montecito Fire Protection District, were called in to provide water and help douse the flames.
Zoo staff members helped visitors leave the facility, McCoy said, adding that there were no injuries.
The 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.
