A Santa Barbara man was sentenced to eight years in prison for starting the Loma Fire that burned about seven acres of the Westside neighborhood and TV Hill in Santa Barbara in 2021.

Victor Angel Hernandez, 24, was arrested the night the blaze started, and later charged with multiple arson counts, including felony arson of an inhabited structure or property on Via Del Cielo.

He pleaded guilty in March to arson of an inhabited structure, and admitted a special allegation of starting a fire that damaged multiple structures, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office said.

Hernandez was sentenced in Santa Barbara County Superior Court on Thursday.

Under the plea agreement, he will also have to register as an arson offender and pay at least $80,000 to the city of Santa Barbara in restitution, District Attorney John Savrnoch’s office said.

The Loma Fire started on May 20, 2021 and the blaze grew quickly due to the windy weather. Two structures were damaged by the flames, and evacuation orders were issued for the neighborhood and the KEYT Channel 3 News television station.

Hernandez was suspected of also starting four smaller fires on the night of the Loma Fire, fire investigators said during the case’s preliminary hearing.

Loma Alta Drive, which crosses through the fire’s burn scar, has been closed for months every winter since the blaze due to concerns about post-fire flooding or debris flows. The city is reopening the roadway on Friday after a 6-month closure.

This is the second recent arson conviction for a southern Santa Barbara County wildfire.

Edward Junior Macklin pleaded guilty to arson of a structure or forest for starting the March 2022 Hollister Fire, a 120-acre blaze at Hollister Ranch. About 30 homes were evacuated but no structures were damaged during that fire.

Macklin was expected to be sentenced to one year in jail and five years of probation.