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.
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.
Nationally there are 14,205 personnel assigned to wildfires — on 331 hand crews, 999 engines, and 110 helicopters.
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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.
Where were the 16 residences burned?