A rare January wildfire, which ignited along the Big Sur coast late Friday, is now 25% contained, CAL FIRE officials revealed Sunday.
Jan 21. at around 9 p.m., PG&E cameras showed flames and smoke rapidly growing near Rocky Creek and Palo Colorado Canyon east of the Bixby Bridge. The blaze was dubbed the Colorado Fire.
According to CAL FIRE, the wildfire has reportedly shrunk from 1,500 acres Saturday to 1,050 acres Sunday as crews successfully build containment lines.
The fire behavior was moderate and made wind-driven runs late Saturday night and into Sunday morning, with some isolated tree torching, fire officials said.
A mandatory evacuation order for all areas West of 3800 Palo Colorado Rd. to Highway 1 and South to Bixby Creek is still in place. For the 500 people unable to return to their homes, an American Red Cross Shelter is available at Carmel Middle School.
The National Weather Service said humidity in the area was in the teens Friday night and wind gusts were around 35 mph. As of Saturday morning, the strongest winds in the area had peaked and continued to ease throughout the day.
Structure damage has so far been minimal, with just one uninhabited yurt being damaged, CAL FIRE public information officer Cecile Juliette told KCBS Radio.
Caltrans closed Highway 1 in both directions from Andrew Molera State Park to the Granite Canyon Bridge. Officials reminded travelers that Big Sur is accessible from the south and advised that they use Highway 10 to Highway 46 to Highway 1 to avoid the blaze.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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