Forest Service News Release 

Alisal Fire Update for Friday, October 15, 2021 

16,901 Acres 

41% Containment 

 1,731 Total Personnel 

Yesterday 

Fire crews made significant progress resulting in the reopening of California Highway 101 and the Union Pacific Railroad. Both had been shut down as a result of the fire’s spread. Firefighters began to mop-up around much of the fire, including Camino Cielo, Refugio Canyon and along Hwy 101. Firefighters “mop-up” after the fire has been controlled by extinguishing or removing burning material near the control line. Crews  secured the perimeter along Reagan Ranch and Refugio Canyon. Hot shot crews also began to cold trail areas along the old Sherpa Fire burn scars, which is a method of controlling a partly dead fire edge by carefully inspecting with the hand for heat to detect any fire. And along Hwy 101, crews removed hazard trees, while helicopters engaged the fire’s edge. The public is reminded to drive cautiously on Hwy 101 as crews continue to monitor the area. Last night, firefighters responded to isolated fire activity on the western most portion of the fire. 

Today 

Today’s priorities will be to secure the fire’s eastern edge along the old Sherpa Fire burn scar, address the western portion near the Cañada San Onofre, and ensure the fire holds where it has been contained. Crews will continue to use aviation assets as conditions allow.  

Weather 

Winds are the primary force behind fire growth. Expect winds to switch back and forth from a northerly to southerly direction throughout the day with gusts up to 20 mph. Wind switches, warm temperatures and decreasing humidity combined have the potential to increase fire activity. Strong down sloping winds will continue to impact fire behavior over the next several days. 

Evacuations 

Santa Barbara County’s evacuation orders remain in effect for Arroyo Hondo Canyon, Refugio Canyon, and the area between El Capitan Beach State Park and West Camino Cielo. Evacuation warnings are still in effect for the area east of El Capitan Beach State Park, west of Dos Pueblos Canyon Rd, and south of West Camino Cielo. 

Updates 

Stay connected for the latest accurate information: 

• Incident Information (Inciweb): https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7862  

• StoryMap: https://bit.ly/AlisalFire  

• Facebook: www.facebook.com/LosPadresNationalForest  

• Evacuations: https://readysbc.org  

Follow QR Code or link below for contacts and additional information 

LINKS - InciWeb the Incident Information System (nwcg.gov) 

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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer,  and lender. 

 Forest Service News Release 

Alisal Fire Update for Thursday, October 14, 2021 

16,801 Acres 

5% Containment 

 1,306 Total Personnel 

Yesterday 

Fire crews held the fire to the north along West Camino Cielo. They completed a successful burnout operation last night from Refugio Road to the Camino Ceilo. The fire also slowed along its eastern flank in the younger fuels from the 2016 Sherpa Fire. Winds drove the fire westward forcing evacuations west of Arroyo Hondo to the intersection of California Highway 101 and Highway 1 towards Gaviota.  

Today 

Today’s priority will be to halt the spread to the northeast above Refugio Canyon. Crews will continue to use aviation assets as conditions allow. On the western edge, firefighters will work on keeping the fire from crossing Hwy 101 at Gaviota. Focus will be on slowing the fire’s expansion to the west and re-opening Hwy 101. Crews continue to engage the Refugio area, as well as clearing downed trees along rail lines. Additional aircraft will amplify efforts beginning today. 

Weather 

Winds are the primary force behind fire growth. Expect wind-swithes throughout the day. Northeast winds switch to westerly in the afternoon and back to northeast in the evening.  Strong down sloping winds will continue to impact fire behavior over the next several evenings. 

Evacuations 

The Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management – the office managing evactuations — issued a new Evacuation Order and Evacuation Warning Oct. 13 at 11:45 p.m.  

• Evacuation Order: For the area west of Arroyo Hondo to the intersection of Hwy 101 and Hwy 1, including Vista Del Mar School and Gaviota Beach.  

• Evacuation Warning: Additional evacuation warning for all properties within Hollister Ranch area.  

Transition 

Santa Barbara County Fire Department’s Type 3 team in coordination with the Los Padres National Forest had been managing the Alisal Fire, since the fire started Oct. 11, 2021. That team transitioned into unified command  with California Interagency Incident Management Team 1 (CIIMT1) Oct. 13 at 6 p.m. CIIMT1 is a federal Type 1 Team led by Incident Commander Jerry McGowan. 

Updates 

Stay connected for the latest accurate information: 

• Incident Information (Inciweb): https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7862  

• StoryMap: https://bit.ly/AlisalFire  

• Facebook: www.facebook.com/LosPadresNationalForest  

• Evacuations: https://readysbc.org  

Follow QR Code or link below for contacts and additional information 

LINKS - InciWeb the Incident Information System (nwcg.gov) 

### 

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer,  and lender. 

Evacuation Warning Upgraded to Evacuation Order for Parts of the Alisal Fire Burn Area

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has issued an EVACUATION ORDER due to an incoming storm Sunday night (October 24) through Monday morning (October 25) with the potential to produce a debris flow. This Order is effective Sunday, October 24 at 12:00 PM (noon) and applies to the following areas in and around the Alisal Fire burn scar: west of Las Flores Canyon, east of Mariposa Reina, south of West Camino Cielo, and down to the ocean. Please evacuate the area by 12:00 PM noon tomorrow Sunday. An Evacuation Center will be opened tomorrow Sunday (exact time to be determined) at the SBCC Wake Center located at 300 N. Turnpike Road, Santa Barbara 93111. For animal evacuation assistance, call the Animal Services Hotline at 805-681-4332. After normal business hours, call the Sheriff’s non-emergency dispatch line 805-683-2724 and ask to speak with on-call Animal Control Officer.

Access the County Public Work Department’s real-time rain and debris basin monitoring cameras here.

Santa Barbara County, in partnership with the National Weather Service, is closely monitoring the incoming storm. County Officials are working closely with the United States Forest Service Burn Area Emergency Response (BAER) Team, the CAL Fire Watershed Emergency Response Team (WERT), and local agencies to further assess the potential risks for debris flows. Residents are encouraged to prepare for potential storm impacts.

VIDEO: Alisal Burn Area Flood Preparation

Highway 101 has reopened in both directions from Goleta to Highway 1, reports CHP - Santa Barbara.
 
The railway parallel to Highway 101 has also reopened for travel in both directions and all services are expected to back to normal.

Today's burn went well and all students had a good final day at the academy. The last classes of the academy finished today and students and staff packed up camp and headed home. Overall the past 2 weeks have been a great success and we look forward to seeing everyone again next year. 
 
 

 Today there will be a 3 acre prescribed burn on Camp Swift. Students in S-130/190, Basic Wildland Fire Fighting, dug hand line yesterday around a simulated 3 acre fire inside an established pine stand. Today those students will get the opportunity to burn off the line the dug yesterday to practice ignition operations. This low intensity burn will remove grass and pine litter built up underneath these pines to reduce fire effects on a later planned burn. Ignitions will begin at at 11:30 a.m and should be completed by 1:00 p.m. once ignitions are complete local resources will monitor the burn. Smoke effects should be limited to Camp swift but local communities may see some light smoke effects in the early afternoon.

 Ignition operations have ended for the day on the prescribed burn on Camp Swift. Resources will stay on the fire through the evening to ensure public safety and more resources will be checking the area tomorrow. The burn went well with all objectives met in a safe fashion. Smoke should be dispersing from the area but may still be visible inside the unit tomorrow as internal pockets burn. Expect to see some more smoke tomorrow due to a small 3 acre burn taking place for the S-130/190 students to mitigate fuels under a pine stand.

 This morning weather conditions were favorable for a prescribed burn and the planned 150 acre burn is taking place. Ignition operations began at 11:30 a.m and are making good progress down the unit. The unit is grass with pine trees that are being burned around to avoid damage. Ignitions will cease by 5:00 p.m and operations should be complete by 7:00 p.m. Residents north and west of Camp Swift could be experiencing some light to moderate smoke effects but those should disperse by this evening. Check back for further updates once ignitions are complete.
 

 On October 19, 2021 the Texas A&M Forest Service will be conducting a prescribed burn on Camp Swift Army National Guard Readiness Center. We will be burning approximately 250 acres in the northwest corner of the property consisting of grass and established trees. These units are being burned to manage hazardous fuel build-up and increase local ecosystem health to benefit the established Loblolly pines in the area. Winds are forecasted to be out of the southeast which could cause some smoke impacts on the community of Elgin. This burn will be held in conjunction with the Capital Area Interagency Wildland Academy (CAIWA) and provide training opportunities for local resources and the participants of the ignitions operations class and the engine operator class.

Media are invited to attend, and should arrive at CAIWA academy at 11:00 a.m and will be escorted on the burn by Public Information Officers from the academy.

October 12, 2021
5:00 p.m. 
 
Basic Firefighting Training

The first of two 5-day Introduction to Firefighting and Wildland Fire Behavior courses, that spend 3-days in the classroom  and 2-days in a hands-on field session, was completed today during this year's CAIWA. In this class students are introduced to many subjects including wildland firefighting techniques, suppression equipment, and safety. 

During this field session a prescribed burn was planned on a 3-acre pine unit but due to high humidity and moderate precipitation, the burn was not able to occur. Teachers used this opportunity to discuss how firing operations are influenced by weather and fuel characteristics. The students were able to gain experience using hand tools and working in an organized hand crew.