What Cal Fire PIOs do and how they do it. Photo by SLOStringer. This PIO is from SLU, Bennett Millory.
Category: Fire Season
Cuesta Fire Update
it is currently 100 acres and 10% contained. These are the weather condition predictions for today.
Here is what SLO’s KSBY says about the cause:
Here is an overview of those fires and their current status as of Monday morning:
“1) The Cuesta Fire — a name given to multiple fires along Cuesta Grade, has burned 100 acres and is 10% contained Monday morning. The fires broke out on the northbound side of the highway at about 6:30 p.m. Sunday. The Cuesta Fire is burning in steep terrain. It did threaten one structure, but crews were able to protect it. More than 250 personnel are currently assigned to the fire. Many worked throughout the night.
CAL FIRE said the flames were burning directly beneath power lines. They said they didn’t expect those flames to cause power issues, but a representative with the power company was called out to monitor the situation. CAL FIRE Chief Rob Lewin said his biggest concern Sunday night was offshore winds, which could cause the fire to move down the grade and jump containment lines Monday morning.
Caltrans crews shut down two lanes of northbound traffic for most of Sunday evening. All lanes are now re-opened and fire officials say they don’t expect the fire to jump the highway. No evacuations are in place at this time.
2) The Cholame Fire — a brush fire near Cottonwood Pass on Highway 41 — was fully contained by midnight Sunday at 12 acres.
The California Highway Patrol says the flames were west of mile marker 50 at the top of the summit known as Cottonwood Pass. That’s northeast of Cholame. This fire was caused by the same vehicle that caused the Cuesta Fire.
3) The Grade Fire — It broke out Sunday afternoon near Buellton and stopped traffic for some time on Highway 101 North. The fire sparked alongside the roadway at the top of the Nojoqui Grade. As of Sunday night, it had burned between four and six acres and was 80 percent contained. An update on containment was not immediately available.”
Cuesta Fire
Cuesta Fire -Photo by SLOStringer
i have been trying to post about this since 7:30 last night, which is when this was taken.
7:30 Multiple starts from about an hour ago merged into one fire on Cuesta Grade. It was started by a dragging chain, and it is probably the same vehicle that started the fire in Santa Barbara County, as well. The fire has crested the ridge to the East of 101. One observer reports it is rugged territory with much fuel. He witnessed 100′ flames, and estimates over 25 acres currently I have a photo from SLOStringer I will try to post when I can. Aircraft were called off for the evening, but are in order for tomorrow. Currently, dozers are trying to put in fire breaks around it, and one structure has structure protection in place.
As of 9:30 last night, it was reported to be 75 acres with zero containment. I’ll try to get an update before going back to sleep – it’s 4 am.
Friday Morning in the Neighborhood
Noon: two more!
Recent Incidents (Prepared 08/14/2015 12:00)
Date Inc # Name Type Location WebComment Resources IC Fuels Acres Lat/Lon
08/14/2015 11:32 LPF-2462
New Wildfire Prewitt camp . . . . . 35.971 x 121.451
08/14/2015 10:50 LPF-2461
New Wildfire 3 miles s. of summit S. Coast ridge road . . . . . 36.011 x 121.452
I’m beginning to think there is a conspiracy of idiocy to set fire to the South Coast, no matter what it takes. Two and 1/2 months or so more of this? Lord help me. Saw a Toyota RJ with a ton of wood down at Cowabunga yesterday. Couldn’t find the guy/gal and gave some thought to stealing all the wood … Not worth the possible consequences.
08/14/2015 10:19 LPF-2458
Wildfire 1/2 mile s. of nacimiento summit . . . . . 36.008 x 121.451
08/14/2015 10:08 LPF-2457
New Wildfire Nacimiento summit . . . . . 36.011 x 121.452
08/14/2015 09:24 LPF-2456
. Smoke Check PREWITT CR/HWY 1 M . . . . . 35.933 x 121.467
At a loss for words…there is no limit to humanity’s stupidity
This photograph was [NOT – see correction] taken at the Lake Fire near Lakeport. It is pretty graphic. It was sent to a friend from a ff up there. He noted, “This could easily be Highway One, if people aren’t careful.” I wish I knew the photographer. If you do, please let me know.
CORRECTION: A friend, Jean LeBlanc, sent me a link to the REAL STORY behind this photo above. It was arson and caused 5 heart attack deaths. This photo shows The Old Fire jumping Highway 18 in Oct 2003 and was taken by Troy C. Whitman of Cypress, CA. Click on the link just below the photo for the rest of the story.
The stupidity I refer to is in reference to the fires mentioned below. The first was a campfire that Rock Knocker spotted on the way up yesterday. The people were out and about, but left their campfire burning, and their “stuff” was still there. He poured what water he had on it, and when he got up here, I called the USFS at PV Station. It was 2 miles up Plaskett.
08/11/2015 10:45 LPF-2408
New Wildfire PLASKETT RDG CG M . . . . . 35.932 x 121.431
then there was this one:
08/11/2015 17:35 FHL-2416
. Wildfire CONE PK LO M . . . light flashy fuel 5 [acres] 36.077 x 121.282
I do not know the source, but I’m willing to bet next month’s wages it was human caused.
Wildfire near Hearst Castle
4:00 pm – getting reports from people in the area of a fire north of Hearst Castle. Cal Fire has B 3419, B1, a/a on order, helio on order, T 74&75, Eng. 3482,3460,3480,3483, WT 57, D3442, and 2 crews. LPF sent the following:
07/28/2015 15:09 LPF-2224
Burnett Wildfire Burnett Peak, . AA07LPF BC11LPF E15LPF 4X4 HEL528LPF PAT18LPF Q . . . 35.757 x 121.161
Bridge Fire in Cambria
1:20 pm – 5 acres. We spotted it coming into town from the South. Three bombers. Reloading right now. Watching and taking photos which I will upload when I can. Here’s one from the spotter
Tankers 74 and 80
New Wildfire?
2:00 pm – I’m trying to add a radar and a lightning strike maps, but they made load at the bottom. Yup. The bottom.
12:00 Update: Fire in Ventana Wilderness, 5 acres, difficult access, AA overhead. Major thunder here, light rain beginning. In Templeton to my south east, a truck traveling near 46 West and 101 was struck by lightning, requiring an ambulance and a tow truck.
11:00 am – UPDATE:
07/19/2015 09:32 LPF-2121
POST Wildfire E. Side of Post Summit/So. Fork/Little Sur River . BC12LPF CRW4LPF DOZ3LPF E17LPF E18LPF E31LPF 4X4 E335LPF E37LPF HEL527LPF PAT18LPF Q12:00 WT5LPF Josh Langston Effective 10:10 . . 36.285 x 121.778
07/19/2015 09:32 LPF-2121
New Wildfire . . E18LPF PAT18LPF Q . . . 36.285 x 121.778
Not sure exactly where this is, but longitude puts it just south? of Big Sur Station, but east? I think? Maybe someone with faster internet can clarify.
Lightning over the Bay by Mike Morales, 7/19/15
Wow, great shot, my friend!
Lightning
NWS reports 600 cloud to ground strikes between 6-7 am. Small fire started in Highlands, but rain helped keep it small. Below is the lightning radar.
Oops … Should have had my coffee first, or gotten the sleep out of my eyes. The rain RATE was 2.54″/hour. I only received .06″ in that cloud burst. My bad! At 5:30 am, I received 2 and 1/2″ of rain in mere minutes. Wow!
I woke around 1:30 am to an amazing light show to my south. The sky is still being lit up every 30 secs or so, now at 2 am. It is far enough away that I can not hear the thunder I can only imagine is crackling through the atmosphere. My SLO weather caster tweets that there has been lightning and rain in SLO Co for the last hour. 
I checked wildCAD to see it hasn’t been updated since last night around 5 pm, but that there were several wildfire starts to the south, including a single tree lightning strike. I can only hope these are accompanied by rain. My cousin’s son said it rained the entire time he drove from Hesperian to Pismo yesterday, per a conversation I had with my aunt last night. We have no rain here, but at least the wild winds I had all day yesterday have died. It is quiet, for now.