The Springs Fire was a

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

in Ventura County, California in May 2013. Although the fire burned only 15 homes, it threatened 4,000. This threat passed when rain shower moved through the

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

area because of a low-pressure system off the coast. Some places got more than half an inch of

rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...

. The fire started at 6:45 AM on May 2, 2013, in

Camarillo, California Camarillo ( ) is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 70,741, an increase of 5,540 from the 65,201 counted in the 2010 Census. Camarillo is named for brothers Juan ...

near

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

and burned across Pacific Coast Highway to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

. Several neighborhoods were evacuated, along with the campus of California State University Channel Islands.

Impacts

The fire burned around of brushland along coastal

Ventura County Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...

and into the

Santa Monica Mountains The Santa Monica Mountains is a coastal mountain range in Southern California, next to the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Transverse Ranges. Because of its proximity to densely populated regions, it is one of the most visited natural areas in ...

. Weather conditions made favorable conditions for brush fires. The

Santa Ana Winds The Santa Ana winds (sometimes devil winds) "Scholars who have looked into the name's origins generally agree that it derives from Santa Ana Canyon, the portal where the Santa Ana River -- as well as a congested Riverside (CA-91) Freeway -- leav ...

were blowing at , spreading the fire; single-digit

humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity dep ...

added to the problems. By May 3, the fire was only 20 percent contained; on May 4, higher humidity made firefighters jobs easier; and on May 5 the fire was 60 percent contained. On May 6, 2013, the fire was almost extinguished as rain fell in the area. Scientists are concerned about the impact of the fire on

Dudleya verityi ''Dudleya verityi'' is a rare species of succulent plant known by the common name Verity's liveforever. It is endemic to Ventura County, California, where it is known from only three occurrences in the vicinity of Conejo Mountain between Camarill ...

, a rare species of

succulent plant In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', me ...

known by the common name Verity's liveforever.

Endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to Ventura County, this species is only found on one edge of the

, where it occurs in

coastal sage scrub Coastal sage scrub, also known as coastal scrub, CSS, or soft chaparral, is a low scrubland plant community of the California coastal sage and chaparral subecoregion, found in coastal California and northwestern coastal Baja California. It is ...

habitat. The dominant plants are California sagebrush (''Artemisia californica''),

California buckwheat ''Eriogonum fasciculatum'' is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names California buckwheat and flat-topped buckwheat. Characterized by small, white and pink flower clusters that give off a cottony effect, this species grows vari ...

(''Eriogonum fasciculatum'') and

purple sage Purple sage has various uses, mostly referring to plants or to Zane Grey's novel ''Riders of the Purple Sage'', set in Utah. There is disagreement about what plant Grey had in mind. Plants *Certain true sages, members of the genus ''Salvia'' in th ...

(''Salvia leucophylla''). At least two occurrences are within the campus bounds of

California State University, Channel Islands California State University Channel Islands (CSUCI, CSU Channel Islands) is a public university in Camarillo, California. It opened in 2002 as the 23rd campus in the California State University system. CSUCI is located on the Central Coast of Ca ...

where faculty and students are tracking sites where the plant exists and studying it. Springs Fire

References

{{2013 California wildfires 2013 California wildfires Wildfires in Ventura County, California

Impacts

See also

References