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Firefighters Have Backup Plan To Ensure Whittier Fire Doesn't Reach South Coast Neighborhoods

(Photo by Mike Eliason, Santa Barbara County Fire Department)
Firefighters at Whittier Fire

Firefighters have made big progress towards containing the two major brush fires burning in Santa Barbara County, but in the case of one of the blazes, they are taking a major new step to ensure the blaze never reaches neighborhoods.

The Whittier Fire in the Santa Ynez Mountains south of Lake Cachuma remains at just over 10,800 acres, while containment has gone from 5% to 25% as of Tuesday morning.

Still, with the Whittier Fire threatening to burn over the mountains towards the ocean, firefighters have announced plans to create a massive fire break as a backup plan to protect homes on the South Coast.

Fire officials have set protecting ranches and homes as their top priority. One of the biggest areas of concern is the south side of the Whittier brush fire, which has begun to climb over the top of the Santa Ynez Mountains towards the South Coast. So far, with the help of changing weather, firefighters have kept the blaze from moving down the mountains into the hills west of Goleta.

Mike Lindbery, is a public information officer for the unified command overseeing efforts to control the fire. Lindbery, who is also a Ventura County Fire Department captain, says that while efforts to keep the blaze from moving downslope have been going well since Sunday, they’re developing a backup plan. This plan will take the form of a fuel break in the hills above Gato, Winchester, and Glen Anne Canyons.

Lindbery says the fire break would incorporate existing barriers, as well as new ones that fire officials intend to create should the blaze continue down the slopes.

The project will have to work around a number of homes which have been built over the years on these hills.

The change in the weather helped ease explosive fire conditions that limited access and increased the chance of firefighters getting trapped. That made it safe enough for ground crews to begin work in areas which were previously too dangerous, like West Camino Cielo and Stagecoach road.

The fire spokesman says that as much as they would like to get the fire contained today or tomorrow, given the rugged terrain the process could take days, and possibly weeks. Fire officials say it’s too soon to even start to project possible containment for the Whittier Fire.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral. 
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