A wildfire which burned in Santa Barbara County for nearly a month is now finally 100% contained.
The Sherpa fire in the Los Padres National Forest west of Goleta made national news, threatening homes and closing Highway 101 multiple times.
It started June 15th in Refugio Canyon. An army of firefighters aided by helicopters, and air tankers kept the flames from reaching the scattered homes, and ranches in the area. The only major structure lost was a water facility for El Capitan State Beach. It eventually burned 7400 acres of land.
While the firefighting efforts dropped out of the news during the last few weeks, crews continued mopup work in the rugged mountains.
A section of the national forest from West Camino Cielo Road from Refugio Pass to the Winchester Gun Club will remain closed through December 1st, to allow the scorched land to rehabilitate.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
