12,613-Acre Fire Costs Nearly $5 Million

PIRU — Seven days, 12,613 acres and nearly $5 million later, the Piru fire is over.

That was the word Saturday night from a spokeswoman for a dozen firefighters who spent the day patrolling the burn area--a charred expanse between Piru and the city of Fillmore in the Santa Clara Valley.

“Obviously, it’s a great relief,” said Jackie Skoggin of the California Department of Forestry, which was one of a dozen city, county and state agencies that sent workers to the blaze, which started a week ago.

The fire was ignited the afternoon of Oct. 18 by a 41-year-old Fillmore man who was using a welding torch to open a gate on a ranch off Piru Canyon Road. The cause has been deemed accidental, Skoggin said.

During the week, nearly 1,500 firefighters battled the blaze from the air and ground. Flames came within a few feet of several homes and forced the evacuation of dozens of residents. Schools in Piru and Fillmore closed for a day and poor air quality sent their physical education classes indoors for two days.

A man’s trailer and his large car and truck collection burned up and one rancher lost more than 800 citrus trees. Eleven firefighters were treated for minor injuries such as twisted ankles and bee stings.

The bill for the staffing and equipment was more than $4 million, and the estimated losses, mostly agricultural, personal property and fencing, topped $400,000.

The land that burned was owned by the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and private individuals.

Also on Saturday, the headquarters for fire personnel--a mini tent and trailer city erected in a Fillmore park--started to come down. The remaining tents and trailers will be hauled off today, Skoggin said.

“It’s almost a ghost town around here,” she added. “We’re winding it all down.”