Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Fire On Santa Cruz Island Continues To Grow; Hits 100 Acres

Fire burning on Santa Cruz Island Tuesday afternoon

A brush fire off the South Coast, on one of the Channel Islands has burned more than 100 acres of land, and is out of control.

The fire started on Santa Cruz Island at about 2:30 Tuesday afternoon, near the main ranch of the Nature Conservancy property. The fire grew from around 20 to 100 acres in three hours.

Four air tankers and 11 hotshot firefighters battled the fire Tuesday afternoon and evening, with 60 more expected to arrive on the island Wednesday morning.

No structures were threatened, but 30 people were evacuated from the island as a precaution. Island Packers canceled public trips to Santa Cruz Island on Wednesday.

National Park Service officials say a small pile of debris which was part of a prescribed burn earlier this week flared up, and started the brush fire.

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. 
Related Stories