Forest Service releases cause of the Whittier Fire

The fire burned 18,430 acres northwest of Santa Barbara, California in July, 2017

Six months after the Whittier Fire stopped spreading the U.S. Forest Service has released the cause of the blaze. The investigation determined that a vehicle driving through tall grass near Camp Whittier ignited the fire.

The Forest Service did not file criminal charges. Due to the age of the driver, the agency will not release any additional details of the investigation.

The Whittier Fire started July 8 on Bureau of Reclamation land and quickly spread onto National Forest System lands northwest of Santa Barbara, California. The fire burned 18,430 acres until it stopped spreading July 20.

The fire has been in the news since a U.S. Forest Service firefighter, Dave Dahlberg, was introduced and honored by President Trump at the January 30 State of the Union Address. Mr. Dahlberg helped rescue 62 children and staff members when the Whittier Fire encircled their camp.

David Dahlberg meets Sonny Perdue.
David Dahlberg meets Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. Dept. of Agriculture photo. Mr. Dahlberg saved dozens of children and adults that were encircled by the Whittier Fire.

USFS firefighter honored at State of the Union Address

A U.S. Forest Service firefighter, Dave Dahlberg, was introduced and honored by President Trump at the January 30 State of the Union Address. Mr. Dahlberg helped rescue 62 children and staff members whose camp had been encircled by the Whittier Fire northwest of Santa Barbara, California.

More information.

USFS firefighter invited to State of the Union Address

Dave Dahlberg helped rescue 62 children and staff members whose camp had been encircled by the Whittier Fire northwest of Santa Barbara, California.

Dave Dahlberg rescue children fire
David Dahlberg, a Fire Prevention Technician on the Los Padres National Forest, is presented an award by Ray Sweet, left, board president for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Los Angeles, and Circle V Ranch Camp director Ray Lopez. October 15, 2016. Photo courtesy of USFS.

A U.S. Forest Service employee is being  honored by attending the President’s State of the Union Address scheduled for 9 p.m. ET Tuesday.

Dave Dahlberg, a Fire Prevention Technician on the Los Padres National Forest working out of Pine Canyon Fire Station, helped rescue 62 children and staff members at the Circle V Ranch Camp during the Whittier Fire July 8, 2017.

This is a big deal. Congratulations to FPT Dahlberg!

Mr. Dahlberg will be one of 12 special guests of President Trump and will be seated with First Lady Melania Trump.

David Dahlberg meets Sonny Perdue.
David Dahlberg meets Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. Dept. of Ag. photo.

As the flames bore down on the camp there was fire on both sides of the access road but he was able to drive through the smoke and heat to the camp where he corralled the scores of children and staff members, keeping them safe. Later a convoy of vehicles took the personnel out of the area.

Mr. Dahlberg provides more details in the video below:

KSBY.com | San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Area News

Here is an excerpt from an article at KSBY:

…At the end of the road, 58 campers ages seven through 16 and 24 adult staff members were trapped in the camp.

The deputies turned around but U.S. Forest Service Patrolman Dave Dahlberg, who was initially behind them, was able to pass and make it through.

“I was able to make access into the camp through all the smoke and flames and all the debris on the road. It was tough at some points,” said Dahlberg, who was familiar with Circle V Ranch from prior training based on similar circumstances.

Dahlberg and the campers sheltered in place at the dining hall. Flames were about 600 feet away.

“I assured them that we were in a safe place and that we would all get out safely. It seemed like minutes but it probably was closer to two hours when I first saw county Dozer 1,” he continued.

Dozer operator Mark Linane started cutting fire line around the camp. Overhead, helicopters and airtankers made drops where the flames were seen moving toward the camp.

Dahlberg doused the dining hall with water as flames approached. Another hour went by before search and rescue vehicles arrived at the camp.

The Whittier Fire burned over 18,000 acres northwest of Santa Barbara. The Circle V Ranch Camp is south of Cachuma Lake and south of San Marcos Pass Road. On the map below it is north of the “W” in “Whittier Fire”.

Whittier Fire map
Map of the Whittier Fire, current at 9:30 p.m. PDT July 16, 2017. Click to enlarge.
Whittier Fire
Whittier Fire. Undated photo posted to Inciweb July 16, 2017.

Little change in Whittier Fire on Monday

Above: The view from the HPWREN camera on Santa Ynez Peak in the middle of the Whittier Fire, looking south at 12:27 p.m. PDT July 18, 2017.

(Originally published at 12:54 p.m. PDT July 18, 2017)

There has not been much change in the status of the Whittier Fire northwest of Goleta, California. Over the last 24 hours satellites have not detected many large heat sources, and the size reported by fire officials has not changed since Sunday morning.

Below is an excerpt from information supplied by the Incident Management Team on Tuesday:

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“Crews working on the eastern perimeter completed a containment line in Bear Creek Canyon, preventing the fire from crossing the creek. The fire continues backing down-slope on the western and southern perimeters.

The northern perimeter is transitioning to patrol and mop-up. Crews on the eastern perimeter are using bulldozers and hand-crews to build line and construct contingency lines. The southern perimeter is backing and is heavily influenced by the marine layer.

Above the marine layer expect active fire behavior; below the marine layer, minimal fire spread is expected due to high humidity.

Fifteen water-dropping helicopters and four fixed-wing air tankers are supporting crews as needed to help cool hot spots.”

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All of the articles we have written about the fire are tagged “Whittier Fire” and can be found here, with the most recent at the top.

Update on structures burned in Whittier Fire, which grew slightly on Monday

Above: 3-D map of the Whittier Fire, looking north. Current at 9:30 p.m. PDT July 16, 2017.

(Originally published at 10:08 a.m. PDT July 17, 2017)

Relatively mild weather conditions aided firefighters on the Whittier Fire Sunday which expanded by less than 300 acres, bringing the total up to 18,311. The relative humidity at San Marcos Pass actually increased after 10 a.m. and hovered around 70 percent, and then after midnight went up to 89 percent. At 9 a.m. Monday it was still very high — 74 percent. Similar conditions should persist through Wednesday, but Thursday through Saturday could see stronger afternoon and evening winds of 10 to 14 mph.

Whittier Fire Del Rosa Hotshots
Del Rosa Hotshots on the Whittier Fire. Undated photo posted to Inciweb July 16, 2017.

Since structures burned during the early hours of the fire the number destroyed has been listed as 20. The Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management has now updated their figures and determined that a total of 46 structures were destroyed, which includes 16 residences and 30 other structures. The other structures were detached garages, barns, bunkhouses, or other improvements.

The number of personnel assigned to the Whittier Fire increased by 347 Sunday, bringing the total to 2,271.

Whittier Fire map
Map of the Whittier Fire, current at 9:30 p.m. PDT July 16, 2017. Click to enlarge.

Nationally there are 14,205 personnel assigned to wildfires — on 331 hand crews, 999 engines, and 110 helicopters.

Whittier Fire
Whittier Fire. Undated photo posted to Inciweb July 16, 2017.
Whittier Fire
The Whittier Fire as seen from Santa Ynez Peak Monday morning, July 17. HPWREN photo.
Whittier Fire MAFFS C-130
A National Guard MAFFS C-130 drops on the Whittier Fire. Undated photo posted to Inciweb July 16, 2017.
Whittier Fire
Fire retardant coats the lens on an HPWREN camera at Santa Ynez Peak, July 17, 2017.

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All of the articles we have written about the fire are tagged “Whittier Fire” and can be found here, with the most recent at the top.

Whittier Fire slows, but keeps spreading west and south

Above: The Whittier Fire as seen from Santa Ynez Peak at 7:13 a.m. PDT July 16, 2017.

(Originally published at 7:55 a.m. PDT July 16, 2017)

The Whittier Fire was less active Saturday than in previous days but it added another 651 acres to bring the total burned area up to 18,015 acres, according to the data from a mapping flight at 12:30 a.m on Sunday. Most of that increase was on the northwest side but the south flank also advanced slowly down the slope.

map Whittier Fire
3-D map of the Whittier Fire looking east. The red line was the perimeter at 12:30 a.m. PDT July 16, 2017. The white line was the perimeter 25 hours earlier. The red shaded area represents intense heat.

The weather forecast for Saturday night predicted Sundowner winds but a weather station at San Marcos Pass recorded mostly mild conditions overnight — winds of 1 to 4 mph gusting at 6 to 11 with the relative humidity hovering around 60 percent. The weather forecasters are having a hard time accurately predicting the Sundowner winds.

map Whittier Fire
Map of the Whittier Fire. The red line was the perimeter at 12:30 a.m. PDT July 16, 2017. The white line was the perimeter 25 hours earlier.

Firefighters working on the eastern side are striving to keep the fire from reaching Bear Creek. The southwest corner of the fire burned into the last year’s Sherpa Fire Saturday and stalled out due to a lack of fuel.

Evacuations are still in effect. (see map)

Resources assigned to the fire include 38 hand crews, 145 fire engines, 30 water tenders, 4 masticators, 6 fixed wing aircraft, 13 helicopters, and 18 dozers for a total of 1,924 personnel.

Engine Crew from Rogue River Whittier Fire
An Engine Crew from Rogue River mops up the Whittier Fire July 14, 2017. Inciweb photo.

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All of the articles we have written about the fire are tagged “Whittier Fire” and can be found here, with the most recent at the top.