A major brush fire on the Central and South Coasts is finally out, but it’s not the huge fire that’s been in the news for the past month.
It’s the Whittier Fire, which started July 8th near Lake Cachuma, in Santa Barbara County. The blaze destroyed 16 homes, and 30 other buildings as it burned south over the Santa Ynez Mountains to threaten homes on the coast.
The 18,000 acre blaze was fully contained in October, about three months after it started. On New Year’s Eve, an aircraft using infrared technology flew over the burn area, and no heat was detected. The blaze was officially declared “out” at 5 p.m. Sunday.
The cause of the Whittier Fire is still under investigation.