The Zaca 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 Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

that began burning in the

San Rafael Mountains The San Rafael Mountains are a mountain range in central Santa Barbara County, California, U.S., separating the drainages of the Santa Ynez River and the Santa Maria River. They are part of the Transverse Ranges system of Southern California ...

, northeast of the

Santa Ynez Valley The Santa Ynez Valley is located in Santa Barbara County, California, between the Santa Ynez Mountains to the south and the San Rafael Mountains to the north. The Santa Ynez River flows through the valley from east to west. The Santa Ynez Valle ...

Santa Barbara County Santa Barbara County, California, officially the County of Santa Barbara, is located in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 448,229. The county seat is Santa Barbara, and the largest city is Santa Maria. Santa Barba ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. It was also the single largest wildfire of the 2007 California wildfire season. The fire started on July 4, 2007, and by August 31, it had burned over , making it California's second largest fire in

recorded history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world hist ...

at that time after the

Cedar Fire The Cedar Fire was a massive, highly-destructive wildfire, which burned of land in San Diego County, California, San Diego County, California, during October and November 2003. The fire's rapid growth was driven by the Santa Ana wind, causing ...

of 2003.

Cal Fire The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) is the fire department of the California Natural Resources Agency in the U.S. state of California. It is responsible for fire protection in various areas under state responsibi ...

update page As of 2023, it is California's 12th-largest recorded fire in modern history. The fire was contained on September 4, 2007, with the fire being brought under control on October 29, 2007.

Fire

On July 4, 2007, at 10:53 AM PDT, the Zaca Fire was started as a result of sparks from a grinding machine on private property, which was being used to repair a water pipe."Officials Find Cause of Zaca Fire", KEYT3 news, July 6, 2007
Archived at Wayback Machine It spread to a size of in August. By August 12, progress was being made on the fire through the combined efforts of firefighters and aircraft. Firefighters were able to turn the direction of the fire away from the Paradise Road community. The Zaca Fire neared containment on September 2. On September 4, 2007, the fire had cost $117 million to fight, and was 100% contained. Hotspots within the fire perimeter continued to burn for over another month, until the Zaca Fire was fully brought under control on October 29, 2007.Zaca Fire Controlled But Not Out
InciWeb. Retrieved on November 6, 2007 Of the 43 non-fatal injuries 2 occurred when a helicopter assigned to the incident crashed.

Impacts

The fire had primarily burned away from populated areas in extremely steep and rugged areas of the

in the

Los Padres National Forest Los Padres National Forest is a United States national forest in Southern California, southern and central California. Administered by the United States Forest Service, Los Padres includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast ...

and the

Santa Ynez River The Santa Ynez River is one of the largest rivers on the Central Coast of California. It is long, ArcExplorer GIS data viewer. flowing from east to west through the Santa Ynez Valley, reaching the Pacific Ocean at Surf, near Vandenberg Space Fo ...

Recreation Area. It only destroyed one Forest Service outbuilding. Its impacts on the environment and area water resources are not yet fully known.Zaca Fire Impacts Will Linger for Years
by Ray Ford, Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved on November 6, 2007 Many trails and campgrounds in the

Dick Smith Wilderness The Dick Smith Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of eastern Santa Barbara County, California, United States, with a portion in Ventura County, California, Ventura County. It is completely contained within the Los Padres National ...

were destroyed. Since then, a number of them have been rebuilt.

References

External links

CDF—California Dept. Forestry: Maps of the Zaca Fire''California Fire News'': daily coverage of the "Zaca Fire" wildland fire including fire perimeter maps, photos
- ''Over 100 pages labeled "Zaca Fire"''
''Associated Press'': "Giant fire in Los Padres forest to cross into Ventura County"''Los Angeles Times'' - "Santa Barbara fire flares anew"''Santa Maria Times'' - "Zaca Fire takes unexpected turn"

Southern California's Worst Brush Fires
{{2007 California wildfires 2007 California wildfires Los Padres National Forest Mt. Pinos Ranger District, Los Padres National Forest Santa Barbara Ranger District, Los Padres National Forest Santa Lucia Ranger District, Los Padres National Forest History of Santa Barbara County, California San Rafael Mountains Wildfires in Santa Barbara County, California

Fire

Impacts

See also

References

External links