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Cooler weather giving firefighters help with Santa Barbara County's Lake Fire

Map of the Lake Fire as of Friday night. The blue line shows its perimeter.
U.S. Forest Service
Map of the Lake Fire as of Friday night. The blue line shows its perimeter.

Latest mapping shows about 37,700 acres burned: Containment at 19%.

Firefighters are finally getting some help from the weather as they continue to battle the Lake Wildfire in Santa Barbara County.

The latest numbers Saturday afternoon show it's burned 37,700 acres, with 19% containment. Temperatures on the fire lines are reported to be in the 80's and 90's, instead of over 100 like they were for the last few days. There's also been a drop in wind.

More than 3400 firefighters are battling the blaze, aided by air tankers and about two dozen helicopters.

One structure was damaged, and three were destroyed. Six firefighters have been injured.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

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.