Favorable weather helped firefighters increase containment of the Gifford Fire to 91% as of Sunday evening.
The size of the area burned has been reduced slightly to 131,589 acres after more accurate mapping.
The blaze began the afternoon of Aug. 1 about 15 miles northeast of Santa Maria and quickly grew on both sides of Highway 166 into both Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
With containment increased, firefighters planned to concentrate on mop-up operations Sunday.
“They will carefully inspect the edges of the affected area to find any smoldering embers, burning tree stumps, or hot ash pits,” Gifford Fire officials sisal.
Water-dropping helicopters remaining on standby to help crews on the ground if necessary.
“On the southern end of the fire, crews are carrying out suppression repair—stabilizing dozer lines, handlines, roads, and trails that were disturbed during firefighting,” incident commanders said. “This work helps prevent erosion and begins the process of restoring the landscape.”
The effort includes both firefighters and a Resource Advisory Team, a group specialists working to protect natural and cultural resources.
The team ensures that repair work is done in ways that are effective for both fire recovery and long-term land management.
As containment has increased, evacuation orders and warnings plus road closures have eased.
Some 3,761 personnel remained on the firefighting force as of Sunday morning, but the number is expected to shrink as containment rises.
Gifford Fire officials will host a virtual community meeting Sunday from 6 to 7 p.m. to provide an update on the current situation and address questions. It will be available on Los Padres National Forest Incident Management YouTube and Facebook page.
Portions of the Los Padres National Forest are temporarily closed for public safety and the protection of natural resources through Feb. 8, federal officials said. The closure includes the entire Santa Lucia Ranger District and a portion of the Mount Pinos Ranger District, forest officials said.