Despite the heat wave ringing in the start of summer and continued sundowner winds, firefighters seemed buoyed Monday night by the significant headway they have made against the Sherpa Fire, which has scorched 7,969 acres along the Gaviota Coast.
Containment of the fire rose to 70 percent by Tuesday morning, as crews continued to shore up containment lines and tackle the edges of the blaze that have yet to fall under their control.
Along with that optimism came the news that most of the hundreds of people who were evacuated from areas affected by the wind-driven blaze would be allowed back into their homes on Wednesday, a week after the fire broke out near the top of Refugio Canyon.
“I’m feeling really good about this thing,” Santa Barbara County Fire Chief Eric Peterson told Noozhawk Monday night. “There’s definitely a sense that we’ve turned the corner a little bit. There’s still some fire out there, but a lot of it is inside the line, which is really a good thing.”
The hope, incident commander Rocky W. Opliger said, is that full containment can be reached by the end of the week.
“We still want to get through one more day of weather” before a firm date can be set, he said.
Unified Command of the fire is handled by the county Fire Department, the U.S. Forest Service and CalFire.
Temperatures in the mountains off Refugio Road reached triple digits Monday afternoon, with wind gusts topping 35 mph at times.
As miserable as the heat has made fighting the flames, the wind has been firefighting crews’ primary meteorological concern. Strong enough wind can fuel the fire’s spread and cause embers to jump containment lines.
Five firefighters who became dehydrated Monday had to be evacuated, Opliger said, though none of the injuries appeared to be significant.
The three firefighters who were evacuated for heat-related illness on Sunday have recovered, Opliger added.
The area of greatest concern with the fire, which broke out Wednesday afternoon high in Refugio Canyon, continues to be the northeast flank, closest to populated areas in western Goleta.
Meteorologist Carl S. Cerniglia Jr. told crews during their evening briefing that Monday night was expected to be similar to Sunday night weather-wise.
Especially near the ridge tops, the weather is expected to be warm and dry, with wind gusts up to 55 mph, he said.
More heat is in the forecast for Tuesday, with temperatures expected to max out between 85 and 90 degrees on the fire lines.
The only building to be damaged by the blaze so far was a water treatment building by El Capitán State Beach.
With the building burned down, the beach and campground are not expected to be open until at least July 15, Eric Hjelstrom, state parks superintendent for the Santa Barbara area, told Noozhawk.
Hjelstrom and Opliger said that the private El Capitán Ranch campgrounds just to the north, which aren’t served by the damaged water treatment system, could open as soon as Saturday pending the removal of fire equipment.
Refugio State Beach, however, is slated to open Saturday, Hjelstrom said. That opening would be contingent on emergency evacuations being lifted.
Starting Wednesday morning, most of the mandatory evacuations will be reduced to evacuation warnings, Opliger said.
Areas under evacuation warnings will likewise be opened without restriction Wednesday at 5 p.m.
Opliger told Noozhawk that Refugio residents and agricultural growers will tentatively be allowed back to their properties at 5 a.m. Wednesday.
However, from 7 to 9 a.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. that day, Refugio Road will be closed to allow firefighting equipment to pass through.
On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a temporary flight restriction around the fire and burn zone. The restriction includes drones, which pose a danger to air operations.
The county Public Health Department and Air Pollution Control District also re-issued an air quality warning for the South County on Monday, which will remain in effect until conditions improve.
“Although winds have dispersed some of the smoke, keeping overall air quality better than expected, there can be still pockets of poor air quality,” the Air Pollution Control District said in a statement.
Over 1,900 personnel were battling the blaze Monday, along with 129 engines, 14 bulldozers, 18 helicopters, four air tankers, and a DC-10 plane.
“We’ve had a lot of aircraft putting down a million gallons of retardant — which is a lot of retardant,” Peterson told Noozhawk. “And it’s made an impact. It doesn’t put your fire out, but gives you an opportunity to get in there and put it out with ground troops, hand crews, and bulldozers and all that good stuff.
“So, a third really good day in a row, and things are looking good.”
The cause of the fire remained under investigation.
The blaze has been fueled primarily by chaparral that has had at least 60 years to grow unburned.
— Noozhawk staff writer Sam Goldman can be reached at sgoldman@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.