Fire

The Alamo Fire burned for two weeks near the Twitchell Dam east of Santa Maria. On Thursday, CalFire reported firefighters have totally contained the blaze and will spend the next few weeks mopping up. The fire destroyed 45 square miles of oak woodland and one home.

UPDATE 7/19/17 8 A.M.: Firefighters extinguished the fire Tuesday night, with three acres burned. All streets are open. 

UPDATE 7/18/17 5 P.M.: Just before 5 p.m., evacuation orders were lifted and CalFire reported good progress made towards containment. 

A fire ignited early Tuesday afternoon in downtown Cambria, prompting San Luis Obispo County to issue evacuation orders for residences and businesses along Main Street and Bridge Street.

UPDATE 7/18/17 11 A.M.: As of Tuesday morning, 40 percent of the wildfire is contained, as firefighters held back the flames from burning more than 40 acres. Foxen Canyon Road is open.

UPDATE 7/17/17 6 P.M.: Forward motion on the fire stopped at 35 acres. 

UPDATE 7/15/17 3:37 p.m.: CHP San Luis Obispo reports as of 2:50 p.m., all lanes of Hwy. 101 northbound are open and the fire is extinguished.

UPDATE 7/15/17 9:37 a.m.: Cal Fire says the forward progress of what's being called the Grade Fire has stopped. "Fire is holding to retardant lines and mid slope road. Crews working on hot spots and containment," the agency says in a tweet.

On the same afternoon the Whittier Fire ignited near a summer camp in Santa Barbara County, another fire broke out east of San Miguel, on the border of rural eastern Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties.

The Tower Fire that burned 58 acres near the Cuesta Grade is 100 percent contained, CalFire announced at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. 

UPDATE: Wednesday, September 21, 2016 at 5:46 p.m.

Containment of the Canyon Fire burning on Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) in Santa Barbara County was growing Wednesday. In addition, VAFB officials said growth was slowing. 

UPDATE: Thursday, May 19, 2016 at 3:54 p.m.

The Comander of Camp Roberts says crews are mostly in the mop-up stage of controlling a roughly 3500 acre fire on installation grounds.

UPDATE: August 17, 2015 at 10:17 a.m.

Crews working to contain a 100 acre brush fire burning along Highway 101 on the Cuesta Grade, just north of San Luis Obispo, will focus their efforts Monday on keeping the fire from spreading into the Santa Lucia Wilderness. In addition, they'll be protecting power lines and communication towers threatened by the fire.

Our intense drought has Central Coast fire protection agencies boosting their efforts to crack down on the use of illegal fireworks.

The ongoing drought will soon affect your ability to enjoy a fire at a popular spot in San Luis Obispo County for toasting marshmallows and listening to the waves.

The fire rings will be removed following this coming Labor Day Weekend at Olde Port Beach within the Port San Luis Harbor District in an effort to reduce wildfire risk.

The concern is over hot, windy weather that could blow embers onto the adjacent hillsides.

An investigation into Monday night's apartment explosion in Goleta shows it was caused by a process used to extract oils from marijuana.

One person was badly injured during the incident and was being treated for third degree burns immediately following the event, according to Santa Barbara County Fire spokesperson Capt. David Sadecki.

It happened at a two-story complex on Elwood Beach Drive in Goleta.

The Santa Barbara County Fire Department says the process known as Butane Honey Oil conversion resulted in a flash fire.

A San Luis Obispo County-wide burn ban goes into effect July 1, as Cal Fire's local unit prepares for the driest, hottest time of the year.

The agency is urging residents to do their part to be fire safe during this critical period.

The burning suspension will remain in effect until there is a significant change in weather conditions or until the end of fire season.

THURSDAY UPDATE: 6:11 p.m.—Santa Barbara County Fire Department investigators have concluded that the Miguelito Fire was started when untrimmed trees came into contact with a live power line.

Investigators say a 12,000 volt power line feeding the plant located at 2500 San Miguelito Rd. in Lompoc, contacted a tree causing embers to drop down and ignite the dry brush along the hillside.

Fire  investigators are looking into the cause of a house fire Monday morning on Platino Lane in Arroyo Grande. Smoke from the hilltop blaze could be seen from as far away as Avila Beach, according to the Five Cities Fire Authority. 

The authority's public information officer Peter Klein said the fire may have started in a lower floor game room. The home's owner tried to initially put it out with a hose after being alerted by a smoke alarm.

A total of 7 people were in the home at the time of the fire, including small children. All made it out safely, said Klein.