Ranch Fire Information Update - October 23, 2007 Evening
Incident: Ranch Wildland Fire
Released: 10/23/2007
Fire Name: Ranch Fire
Date and Time of Fire Start: October 20, 2007 - 9:42 p.m.
Cause: Under Investigation
Size: 47,240 acres (Acreage reduction due to infrared intelligence mapping of fire boundaries)
Location: Northwest of Castaic / Northeast of Piru
Angeles National Forest, Santa Clara-Mojave Rivers Ranger District
Road Closures: Highway 126
Old Highway 99 (at Templin Highway)
Containment: 10%
Vegetation: Heavy Brush and Chaparral (4-8 ft. high); grasses; oak woodland
Chaparral is approximately 40 years-old
Cause: Under Investigation
Weather Conditions: Winds at 21-38 m.p.h. from the East-Southeast; Relative Humidity - 8%
Evacuations: Chiquito Canyon, Hasley Canyon, Val Verde, Hopper Canyon, and near Fillmore.
Evacuation Centers: Fillmore Veterans Memorial Building; 511 2nd St.; Fillmore, CA
Livestock: Ventura County Fairgrounds, 866-387-8911
Small Animals: Camarillo Animal Shelter 805-388-4343 ext. 9
Fire Behavior: Moderate to gusty winds have continued to spread the fire. Containment efforts, including burnout operations, to protect communities along the southern boundary have been largely successful. Fire is burning west into Ventura County and the Los Padres National Forest.
Agency Jurisdiction: U. S. Forest Service, Angeles National Forest; Ventura County and Los Angeles County
Agencies Involved: U.S. Forest Service; Ventura County Fire Department; Ventura County Sheriff's Department; Los Angeles County Fire Dept; California Highway Patrol; Cal Fire; Los Angeles County Animal Control; Cal-Trans; Governor's Office of Emergency Services; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Red Cross
Incident Commander: Jeanne Pincha-Tulley (Incident Base at Castaic Lake Park)
Equipment and Personnel: 1264 personnel are assigned to the fire: 145 Engines; 24 hand crews; 3 Helitankers, 4 Helicopters, 12 bulldozers, 23 Water Tenders
Threats:
- Communities of Val Verde, Santa Paula, Fillmore, Piru, Ventura, and Ojai
- California Condor Habitat; Condor Sanctuary, Sespe Wilderness
- Ventura River and Santa Clara River Watersheds
- Hopper Canyon National Wildlife Refuge, Petroleum Fields
- Fillmore Railroad, Sespe Village
- Multiple powerline, pipeline and transportation infrastructure (Interstate Hwy 5, State Hwy 126, 150, & 33.
Structures Destroyed: 3 residences, 4 outbuildings, 14 boats in a storage yard
Injuries: None
Additional Information:
