The 904-acre Cuyama Valley fire that sparked Tuesday afternoon hit 50% containment Thursday morning, according to the Santa Barbara County Fire Department.

Firefighters spent Wednesday night into Thursday morning corraling “several small spot fires caused by shifting winds,” County Fire spokeswoman Karen Cruz-Orduña said.

“Firefighters continue strengthening containment lines and mopping up hot spots across the incident today in the Cuyama Valley …,” she said. “Resources remain engaged in mop-up operations 50 to 100 feet interior from containment lines, focusing on heavy heat remaining in juniper vegetation.”

Cruz-Orduña said 275 people were assigned to the blaze, known as the Foothill Fire.

The cause of the fire was still under investigation. One structure has been destroyed, per County Fire.

Emergency crews first converged on Highway 166 east of New Cuyama at around 4:02 p.m. Tuesday for a report of a growing vegetation fire that was burning toward Castro Canyon Road at a moderate rate.

The fire spread to 250 acres Tuesday night, then to 906 acres by Wednesday at 8 p.m.

County officials first issued evacuation orders and evacuation warnings late Tuesday afternoon.

Officials downgraded the orders Thursday night. By 9 p.m., only the areas north of Castro Canyon, east of Perkins Road, west of the Cuyama River, south of Cuyama Valley, north of Big Pine Mountain and west of the Cuyama River/Highway 33 remained under an evacuation warning.

“Residents are encouraged to remain out of the area until the Evacuation Warning is cancelled. Residents that decide to return now should stay vigilant of changing conditions and be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice,” county spokespeople said Thursday night.

Highway 166 was also open to traffic as of Thursday night.

Click here for the evacuation map, and get updates here.