Santa Barbara County Fire Department investigators say a 2018 brush fire near Goleta which destroyed 10 homes is another case of wind interacting with the electrical grid. The July, 2018 Holiday Fire burned more than 110 acres of land just north of the city.
Fire investigators say it was windy and hot the night the fire started. They think the wind blew branches or a palm frond across some distribution electrical conductors. The branches or fronds either ignited, or sent firebrands onto the ground, where brush and plant debris caught on fire.
The fire then spread south, to the North Fairview area. In addition to ten homes lost, three others were damaged. 14 other structures were destroyed.
