Firefighters across the region continued to battle the Sherpa Fire that broke out on Scherpa Ranch, located just south of Santa Ynez, on the afternoon of June 15.
According to Dave Zaniboni, a spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, the fire has grown to 7,969 acres, adding that at least 70 percent of it has been contained as of the morning of June 21.
Numerous mandatory evacuations throughout the area have been in place since last week.
Sections of Highway 101 along the South Coast were temporarily closed last week on numerous occasions as firefighters fought to quell the fire, Zaniboni said.
In addition to Santa Barbara County, fire departments from Ventura County and CalFire have been fighting the blaze. More than 2,000 personnel are fighting the fire, according to figures provided by the county fire department.
Additionally, several heavy pieces of equipment have been brought in to fight the fire burning on the rugged terrain. According to the county fire department, 14 bulldozers, 129 fire trucks, 29 water tenders, 49 hand crews, and air support that includes 18 helicopters, four air tankers, and one DC-10 have been dumping water and fire retardant since June 15.
So far, no injuries or deaths have been reported from the fire.
This article appears in Jun 23-30, 2016.
