Fire Burns 70 Acres but Poses Little Threat

A brush fire burned about 70 acres Sunday in a canyon on the south side of Pine Mountain in Los Padres National Forest, authorities said.

The fire was reported at 2:39 p.m. in Chorro Grande Canyon, about three miles south of Pine Mountain Road, north of California 33. Personnel from the Ventura County Fire Department, California Department of Forestry, Santa Barbara County and Los Angeles County fire departments assisted crews from the U.S. Forest Service in battling the blaze, said Los Padres National Forest spokesman Gary Wuchner.

The Chorro Fire, as it was dubbed, burned scrub oak and chaparral in steep terrain. Several campgrounds are located in the area, but none was evacuated, Wuchner said.

Air tankers flew a line of retardant around the fire just before 6 p.m., and the fire continued to be most active on its north flank. “The wind is being real good to us,” Wuchner said.

Firefighters were assisted later in the day when the temperature dropped to about 78 degrees and humidity rose to 32%, said a forest service spokesman. The wind was blowing out of the northeast at 6 mph.

No one was injured, and no structures were threatened, according to authorities.

As many as six air tankers, two helicopters, 15 engines, one bulldozer and seven hand crews were called to the scene, Wuchner said.

Authorities were expected to have the fire contained by 10 p.m. Sunday and were still trying to determine the cause, said a forest service spokeswoman.