Gibraltar Fire Advisory (9 a.m. Update)
(Friday Update 9 a.m.) Thanks to the incredible efforts of firefighters and air crews
yesterday, the situation with the Gibraltar Fire continues to be
stable. All classes and activities at Westmont, including Preview Days, will
proceed as usual.
The evacuation zones were lifted as of 8 a.m. Containment is at 50 percent. Road closures remain in effect: East Camino Cielo at Painted Cave Road to Gibraltar Road and W. Mountain Drive at Gibraltar Road. Fire personnel and equipment remain on the scene on East Camino Cielo: 10 engines, 4 dozers, 4 water tenders, 4 hand crews and approximately 250 personnel.
The entire Westmont community expresses deep gratitude for the
effective work by all the personnel involved in suppressing the fire.
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Gibraltar Fire Advisory (8 p.m. Update)
The fire situation continues to be stable, and fire officials are monitoring the weather and winds, ready to respond should conditions change.
We expect all Westmont classes and activities to proceed normally on Friday, including Preview Days.
A five-man crew from the Westmont Fire Brigade will stay on campus overnight, and the wildfire shelter mobilization team will remain on call.
All evacuation warnings remain in effect until 8 a.m. Friday, and we will continue to follow updates from fire officials and be ready to take action if evacuation is recommended or ordered.
Helicopter drops will resume at 6 a.m. Friday morning. The Unified Command has committed significant resources to fighting the Gibraltar Fire: 10 helicopters, 20 engines, four bulldozers, five water tenders, eight hand crews and about 520 personnel. Ten air tankers and a DC10 dropped more than 85,000 gallons of fire retardant around the entire perimeter of the fire. More than 50 engines are staged at Earl Warren Showgrounds, and four air tankers remain on standby at Santa Maria Airport.
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Gibraltar Fire Update from Westmont President Gayle D. Beebe at 5 p.m.
First of all, I want to thank the amazing firefighters and air crews for their aggressive and unprecedented response to a brush fire in Santa Barbara. It’s been so reassuring to hear the helicopters and tankers overhead as they repeatedly drop water and retardant on the fire. We understand that the ground crews are working hard to contain the blaze in a steep canyon and stop its growth. We greatly appreciate all these efforts to suppress the fire as quickly as possible.
I’m delighted Westmont could play a key role in the community response, with helicopters landing on Lovik Field, refilling with our water and taking off again to fight the blaze.
All Westmont events for this afternoon and evening will continue as planned, including the opening reception at 5:30 p.m. for the latest exhibit in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art, “Saar, Serra, Surls and More: Thirty New Acquisitions in Contemporary Art.
The fire department has cleared us to hold the men’s basketball game with the University of La Verne at 7:30 p.m. in the gym.
I’ve loved seeing the impressive response of the Westmont community to the fire today. The Westmont Fire Brigade suited up first thing this morning and will continue to stand by with our 2,400-gallon tanker and the 150-gallon tender designed to navigate difficult terrain. We created this group after the Tea Fire, and they have trained regularly to be ready for future fires. The Strategic Readiness and Response Team has stayed on high alert all day, and I’m thankful for their good work.
We appreciate all the prayers and support we’ve received from the Santa Barbara community and the extended Westmont family. Please keep praying for all those fighting the fire.
Blessings,
Gayle D. Beebe, Ph.D.
President, Westmont College
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UPDATED at 1:15 p.m.
Life goes on at Westmont. Fire conditions remain unchanged, and the barrage of helicopter and tanker drops continues. Crews are working to slow the growth of the fire on the ground.
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department and the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District today issued an Air Quality Watch for the Montecito Area of Santa Barbara County due to the potential presence of smoke and ash from the Gibraltar Fire. Everyone, especially people with heart or lung disease (including asthma), older adults, and children, should limit time spent outdoors and avoid outdoor exercise when high concentrations of smoke and particles are present. Symptoms are: repeated coughing, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, wheezing, chest tightness or pain, palpitations, nausea or unusual fatigue or lightheadedness. For full details, view this message on the web.
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UPDATE AT NOON
Classes and activities continue as usual on campus with the reassuring sound of helicopters and tankers aggressively fighting the Gibraltar Fire.
UPDATE at 10:30 a.m.
Fire officials have extended the evacuation warning to the zone that includes Westmont. This is only a warning, and there is no evacuation order in effect. Should one be issued, Westmont will decide whether to evacuate the campus or shelter in place as we did successfully during the 2008 Tea Fire. The generator in the gym is hooked up and ready to go. The college’s Fire Brigade has assembled with its engine and tender, and they are standing by.
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UPDATE 9:30 a.m.
All activities on Lovik Field are cancelled for today. Two helicopters are landing there and refilling with Westmont’s water to fight the fire.
Westmont has posted liaisons at the Montecito Fire Department and the Santa Barbara County Emergency Operations Center to keep campus officials updated with the latest news about the fire.
Here is the latest update from Santa Barbara County
Forest Service reports #GIBRALTARFIRE is at 65-70 acres. 10-15 mph winds. Evacuation warnings issued zones 3, 4, and 5. Evacuation warning includes areas north of Hwy 192, east of Cold Springs Rd., west of Buena Vista Rd., and south of East Camino Cielo.
As of 8:45 a.m., one air tanker, dispatched from Paso Robles, had dropped about 1,200 gallons of retardant on the Gibraltar Fire, but two other planes — dispatched from the Santa Maria Air Tanker Base — have not yet dropped because of air turbulence. Another tanker, loaded and ready to go, is waiting at the Santa Maria facility for the green light to go.
Directing traffic from a plane in the air is Mark Nunes, aviation director for the U.S. Forrest Service. According to Jim Kunkle, the contractor who runs the Santa Maria Air Tanker Base, when winds sheer down the mountains toward the sea, which creates air turbulence that makes it too dangerous to get close enough to the fire to drop. Kunkle said the two hovering tankers hold a combined capacity of 6,200 gallons of retardant. He said it takes tankers about 15 minutes to fly from Santa Maria to the Gibraltar Fire and anywhere from 4-to-7 minutes to reload, depending on the capacity of the tanker.
Kunkle said the Forest Service ordered over ten tankers. "They’re going after everything they can get,” he said. Kunkle expressed confidence the base is big enough and prepared to handle such volume “seamlessly.” The major hitch, obviously, is dropping the load of retardant on the flames.
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Update at 9 a.m.
Classes and activities, including Staff Forum, are taking place as usual at Westmont.
The #GibraltarFire has grown to 60-70 acres. Fire crews are arriving from Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties.
Helicopters and an air tanker are now making drops on the fire.
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Update at 8 a.m.
The generator in the gym is hooked up and ready to go if the campus community needs to shelter in place, as we did safely during the 2008 Tea Fire.
Westmont has assembled the Fire Brigade and put the engine on patrol. The tender is on standby, and physical plant staff are setting up and staffing a hydrant station at the gym.
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UPDATE at 7:25 a.m.
The Unified Command has issued an evacuation warning that does not include Westmont: North of Hwy 192, East of Cold Springs, West of Buena Vista, South of East Camino Cielo. (Evacuation Zones 3, 4, and 5 ).
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A brush fire broke out in the hills above Montecito, west of Montecito Peak and a half mile below Camino Cielo, at 5:16 a.m., this morning. In 90 minutes, the wind-driven fire had grown to about 25 acres.
The Unified Command includes Montecito Fire, USFS, Santa Barbara City Fire, and Santa Barbara County Fire. They have not issued any evacuation orders at this time.
Westmont is currently not evacuating but is monitoring the situation closely. Classes will occur as normal unless the situation changes and the campus must evacuate or shelter in place. The campus community has received an alert about the fire and will be prepared for action.
The college will post additional updates on the website and social media.
For more information, see http://www.montecitofire.com/article/7850-gibraltar-incident-brush-fire