Santa Barbara County's Sherpa brush fire grew slightly overnight Friday, passing the 7000 acre mark, but as of Saturday morning firefighters now have the blaze 24% contained.
The wind wasn't as strong as predicted overnight. Firefighters didn't face the same kind of issues they did Wednesday and Thursday nights, where sundowner winds put them in a defensive position, focusing primarily on protecting homes and ranches. They conducted some backburns last night to help remove fuel from the path of the fire.
Highway 101 also remained opened overnight from Goleta to Buellton after two nights of closures forced by the fire.
For the first time, fire commanders have projected when the blaze will be fully contained, but say they don't expect it to happen until next Friday. More than 1200 firefighters aided by more than 20 aircraft are fighting the fire.
The big concern today will be the heat. It's the opening day of a heat wave expected to peak on Monday, and temperatures on the fire lines could get to around 90 degrees. No homes have been lost, but Santa Barbara County officials say there has been significant damage to some agricultural property, including orchards and grazing land. All mandatory evacuation orders remain in place.
On Friday, Santa Barbara County Supervisors declared a local state of emergency, to allow county resources to be accessed for dealing with the fire, and setting the stage for potential state and federal aid.
