Highway closed as wildfire nears Reagan’s former ranch
A MAJOR coastal highway in the United States stayed shut yesterday and evacuation orders were in place from a growing blaze driven by intense winds that raised the risk of wildfires in much of California.
More than 200 firefighters battled the Alisal Fire, which covered 54 square kilometers along coastal Santa Barbara County and was only 5 percent contained, county fire officials said.
The fire was burning near Rancho del Cielo, which was once owned by Ronald and Nancy Reagan and was known as the Western White House during his presidency. Fire crews were protecting the ranch where Reagan hosted world leaders.
The fire erupted on Monday on a ridge and swept toward the ocean, forcing the closure of US 101, the only major highway on that section of the coast. Evacuation orders and warnings were in place for ranches and several rural communities.
While the area was lightly populated, the blaze threatened more than 100 homes, ranches and other buildings, fire officials said.
“The fire is burning in dense chaparral and is being pushed by strong winds and growing at a rapid rate of speed,” a fire update said on Tuesday, when gusts reached 115 kilometers per hour in some areas.
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors declared a local emergency on Tuesday and asked Governor Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency to free more state resources for firefighters and evacuees.
In Northern California, fire crews increased containment of a blaze that destroyed 25 mobile homes, 16 RVs and a park building at the Rancho Marina RV Park in Sacramento County.
No injuries were reported, and the cause remained under investigation.
To the south in San Joaquin County, a man suffered severe third-degree burns over most of his body and about five mobile homes were damaged by flames that raced through the Islander Mobile Home Park, Lathrop-Manteca Fire Chief Josh Capper told Fox40-TV.
Powerful gusts swept across the state on Monday, toppling trees and whipping up blinding dust clouds.
Windy weather is a nightmare for firefighters in a state where heatwaves and historic drought tied to climate change have left forests and brush tinder-dry. Fires that began in late summer are still burning after razing hundreds of homes.