The Gifford Fire in California continued burning on Sunday, Aug. 3, with 39,676 acres scorched, according to InciWeb. It is currently 5% contained, and three people have been reported injured.
One of the injured was a civilian who was taken by helicopter to Marian Regional Medical Center with burn wounds, Los Padres National Forest said in a press release. Two contractor employees were also hurt in a utility task vehicle (UTV) rollover incident. They were taken to Marian Regional Medical Center for treatment.
United States Forest Service said the blaze started in the afternoon on Friday, Aug. 1, along Highway 166, near the Gifford trailhead on the Santa Lucia Ranger District. Gifford burned more than 23,000 acres in tall grass and chaparral within 24 hours. The cause of the fire is under investigation. This is area is near the Madre Fire, which grew to more than 80,000 acres in July.
Evacuation orders are in place for the Upper Tepusquet Canyon south of Highway 166, the area south of Highway 166 and west of Cottonwood Canyon Road. Meanwhile, lower Tepusquet Canyon, north of the Sisquoc River, as well as residents south of Highway 166, east of Cottonwood Canyon Road and west of School House Road, are under evacuation warnings.
On Sunday, firefighters constructed a fire line in the southern parts of the fire and scouted containment lines on the eastern side spanning Miranda Pine Mountain to Cuyama Valley. “Contingency lines” were created to stop the fire from going into the Manchesna Wilderness, InciWeb said. Five hundred and sixty-one people were on site to fight the flames.
Weather conditions are expected to continue being hot and dry through Tuesday, Aug. 5. Winds pushing into the area could affect fire behavior, according to InciWeb.
Local news outlet KSBY spoke to a couple, Joseph and Heidi Sill, who own a ranch on Highway 166, who said the Gifford Fire “smoked [them] completely.” Heidi Sill said some of their cattle died in the fire, and most or even all of the survivors suffered burn injuries.
“We’ve seen a million fires, but I’ve never seen anything like this ever,” Joseph Sill said.
