As firefighters ramp up containment of a devastating wildfire in Ventura County, new access to burned areas reveals more damage from the fire that exploded last week during an unusual wind event.
Officials said Tuesday that 207 structures, many of them homes, were destroyed after more than a dozen teams inspected about 900 homes across the 20,630-acre fire site. This is an increase of more than 60 homes from Monday’s tally. An additional 90 structures were also damaged, according to the latest tally from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Ventura County Agriculture Commissioner Colin Bell said officials reported more than $6 million in agricultural losses from the fire, which destroyed avocado, citrus and raspberry fields.
“We are the No. 1 producer of avocados in the state, and unfortunately avocados have been the hardest hit by this fire so far,” Bell said at a press conference Monday night. . She reported that 500 acres of avocado trees have been damaged or destroyed, and 2,500 acres are being used for livestock grazing, in addition to 130 acres of citrus trees and 10 acres of raspberries. However, she said the $6 million loss was likely a gross underestimate as only a quarter of the farmland had been assessed.
“We expect that number to grow exponentially,” she said.
The wildfire was said to be 48% contained as of Tuesday morning, and officials were confident it could hold its course even though winds were expected to pick up slightly.
Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said late Monday that “conditions on the fire appear to be very good.” “The mountain fire is making us all feel comfortable, but we’re buttoned up. If you’re downwind of this fire, there may be flare-ups and dust, and you’ll feel a lot of ash and dust.” It will happen.”
National Weather Service meteorologist Ryan Walbran, who covers wildfires, said wind speeds could reach 35 to 45 mph in some high mountains on Tuesday and Wednesday, making things more difficult as humidity is expected to drop. He said that a similar situation could arise. But that pales in comparison to the Santa Ana’s extreme winds that helped fuel the fire’s spread and pushed embers more than a mile in front of the main fire, he said.
“Tuesday and Wednesday will have very low humidity and some wind,” Walbran said. “Again, this is not a red flag and it’s not even close to the point where the fire started. So I think this wind test is a good thing to test the containment lines.”
And as of early Tuesday, firefighters still had the upper hand on the blaze.
“So far so good,” said Greg Baranek, a spokesman for the Unified Wildfire Response Command. “Once we get through this [wind event]…It should be smooth sailing. ”
But even though the worst of the fires have been extinguished, authorities are now bracing for what will undoubtedly be a long and difficult road to rebuilding and rebuilding the community. Many county officials point to past fires as a roadmap for that process.
“We’re in the recovery phase,” Gardner said. “Please be patient as the recovery phase will be long.”
Despite extensive damage to homes, structures and farmland, the fire caused only minor injuries and no people were reported missing or killed.
“This fire could have been an absolute disaster for our community,” Gardner said. “We suffered losses, but no one died. We suffered losses, but we can bounce back. We can rebuild, we can recover, we can heal.”
