Ponderosa Update, 8/5/09

As of approximately 7:30 pm, inciweb had this to say about the Ponderosa Fire:

The Ponderosa Fire started on Saturay, August 1st at approximately 7:45 in the evening. The fire is located in the Ventana Wilderness in very steep, rugged terrain. The cause is still under investigation. Approximately 458 acres have burned and 69 percent of the fire is contained. The fire is being aggressively fought by fire crews constructing line on the fire’s edge where possible and going indirect with the use of dozers outside of the wilderness boundaries. Also assisting handcrews is the use of helicopters and air tankers dropping both retardant and water. No structors are threatened at this time. At the present time, there is no containment date.

Basic Information
Incident Type Wildfire
Cause Under Investigation
Date of Origin Saturday August 01st, 2009 aprox 07:45 PM
Location Monterey Ranger District, Ventana Wilderness
Incident Commander James E. Smith
Current Situation
Total Personnel 730
Size 458 acres
Percent Contained 69%
Estimated Containment Date Sunday August 09th, 2009 aprox 06:00 PM
Fuels Involved
Oak woodlands and Chaparral
Fire Behavior
Minimal activity with isolated pockets of heat.
Significant Events
Significant increase in containment was achieved today due to exceptional effort by ground and air resources. Crews continued to widen and strengthen lines throughout the fire with good success. Suppression cost to date is $2,100,000.00. There have only been 3 minor injuries to date with firefighters returning to duty.
Outlook
Planned Actions
Tonight crews will continue to improve the lines on the southern to eastern sections of the fire. Crews and fire personnel will continue to mop-up and patrol existing lines in the northern and western sections of the fire.
Growth Potential
Medium
Terrain Difficulty
Extreme
Remarks
CCIIMT-7, Jim Smith’s type 2 team has assumed command as of 0600 on 8/3/2009. Today, August 4, 2009, the incidet went into unified command with Fort Hunter Liggett. Highway 1 is open. Nacimiento-Ferguson Road is open from Highway 1 to the junction with the South Coast Ridge Road only to residents. The South Ridge Road is closed at the junction with Nacimiento Ferguson Road. Nacimiento Ferguson Road is closed from the junction with the South Coast Ridge to Ft. Hunter Liggett.
Current Weather
Wind Conditions 8 mph W
Temperature 50 degrees
Humidity 60%