Goleta fire doubles to 2,400 acres; Big Sur remains under evacuation

GOLETA, Calif. -- The Gap fire looming over this town has grown to more than 2,400 acres this morning, doubling in size overnight as burned for its third day. Farther north, Big Sur remained under evacuation orders because of a stubborn blaze.

The fires are among more than 1,000 that have burned in the state, largely in the north, for more than a week, stretching firefighting resources thin.

On Wednesday night, the Gap fire knocked out electricity for as long as four hours in a large swath of Santa Barbara County, but most of it was restored by midnight, said John Jaysinghe, a Santa Barbara County spokesman.

Burning acreage that has been untouched by flame since 1954, the fire has grown, coming within a mile of residences, but so far has not burned any homes. About 40 homes in two rural canyons remain evacuated today and another 300 are in an area that has been warned that evacuation orders may come.

Later this morning, Santa Barbara County supervisors are scheduled to ratify an emergency declaration, paving the way for formal requests of state and federal aid.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

In Big Sur, the fire jumping a containment line Wednesday morning was a setback for the tourist-dependent economy. A number of famed resorts and restaurants that had briefly reopened found themselves back in harm’s way and had to shut down again.

The fire’s spread also shut down about 30 miles of Highway 1 -- the coastal area’s principal road. “Up until yesterday, I would have said it’s a day-to-day situation,” said Kirk Gafill, the general manager of his family’s six-decade-old Nepenthe restaurant. “Now, I’d say it’s minute to minute, or hour to hour.”

Despite evacuation orders, about 12 of the 20 employees who live at the Nepenthe colony chose to stay along with Gafill.

Gafill, president of the local chamber of commerce, said most businesses on the rugged 70-mile cliff-side highway had closed. The small community of Big Sur was under evacuation orders. Workers applied a coating of fire-resistant gel to vulnerable homes and lodges -- including the Ventana Inn and Spa -- as the unpredictable fire raged.

“It seems to be giving the fire guys conniption fits,” said Darby Marshall, a spokesman for the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services. “It’s doing things they normally wouldn’t expect.”

Meanwhile, about 300 firefighters Wednesday mounted a campaign against the Gap fire in Santa Barbara County, using four helicopters and six air tankers to drop loads of water and chemical retardants. Much of the battle was conducted from the air as firefighters streamed in without a break from fires that have been raging across the state.

“Could we use more resources? Absolutely!” Santa Barbara County Fire Chief John Scherrei said. “But California is stretched thin.”

The blaze was about two miles west of the path of the 1990 Painted Cave fire, which burned 600 structures in 90 minutes.

“I remember how it jumped the freeway and people just had to scramble,” said Christina Djernaes, 39, an attorney who was heading home to pack her valuables just in case. “I don’t want that to happen this time.”

Celia Breyfogle, 75, and her husband Newell, 78, had already boxed up clothing, pictures and documents by Wednesday morning.

“It’s been a terrible year,” Celia Breyfogle said. “The Midwest is getting water, water, water, and we’re getting fire, fire, fire. Wish we could all share.”

Motorists on U.S. Highway 101 on Wednesday could see fingers of smoke working their way down the mountain about two miles north of the freeway.

The blaze started about 5:45 p.m. Tuesday near the Winchester Gun Club, said Capt. Eli Iskow, a spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department. Investigators on Wednesday had not yet pinpointed the cause.

About 40 homes in rural Glen Annie and La Patera canyons were evacuated.

An evacuation warning was issued for residents of about 300 homes above Cathedral Oaks Road, between Glen Annie Road and Fairview Avenue.

In Northern California, firefighters continued to battle the numerous lightning-triggered wildfires that have burned more than 440,000 acres.

Statewide, 7,800 homes remain threatened and 31 residences have been destroyed.

Big Sur continues to be among the most threatened spots, with 17 homes lost, 1,200 still threatened and about 1,500 people evacuated.

“For the first time in my life, I saw caravans of people in cars packed with their belongings heading out of the evacuation zone,” Nepenthe’s Gafill said. “What I’ve seen on the news from many parts of the world was coming back to us.”

Officials say they don’t expect to have the fire contained until the end of the month at the earliest.

As of 7 p.m. Wednesday, Highway 1 was closed from Limekiln State Park in the south to Andrew Molera State Park in the north.

“We know a lot of people have remained behind -- that’s just the way they live,” said Maia Carroll of the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services. “But we’re worried for them.”

In recent days, weather has helped firefighters to control the blaze, which has charred more than 61,000 acres. Fog is expected through the week, and winds from the north continued to push the blaze back on itself, slowing its march toward more populated areas.

The winds also could push the fire deeper into the Ventana Wilderness and toward the remote outpost of Tassajara Hot Springs, where the Buddhist monks of the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center have been preparing for days to fight the flames along with forest service crews.

Although the Basin Complex fire remains less than 5% contained, an even bigger blaze burning to the east in the Los Padres National Forest is expected to be fully controlled by Thursday, fire officials said.

In other parts of Northern California, authorities said they were continuing to get the upper hand on more than 100 of the fires ignited by the lightning barrage June 21.

catherine.saillant@ latimes.com

steve.chawkins@latimes.com