There was a palpable giddiness radiating from the firefighting brass who assembled in San Marcos High School auditorium Sunday evening, born of exhaustion, relief, adrenaline, and success. They’d managed to survive with astonishing little damage the hairiest, scariest daylong showdown with the Thomas Fire since it crossed the county lines a week ago. Said one of the commanders after addressing the crowd, “I had a hard time not dancing up on that stage tonight.”
According to Cal Fire’s Geoff Pemberton, 1,300 structures were immediately threatened by the Thomas Fire on Saturday. Only 24 structures were damaged or destroyed during the firefight. Of those, only 14 were residences. To put these numbers in context, 210 homes were lost in the Tea Fire and 640 in the Painted Cave Fire. Not a single reportable injury was claimed by any of the firefighters holding the line in the front country separating Montecito and Santa Barbara from the steep, rocky, densely vegetated terrain sprawling behind it.
“Oh boy, that fire really wanted to come running down the hill,” exclaimed Santa Barbara County Battalion Chief Chris Childers. “And it did.” Waiting for the fire were hundreds of fire engine crews from hundreds of firefighting agencies throughout the state and country. They’d been marshaling their forces there the past week, creating and expanding the defensible spaces around threatened homes along East Mountain Drive, coiling their hoses in anticipation of the fire — fueled by 65 mph gusts — rushing down the hill. “We had a great day yesterday, didn’t we?” asked Childers. Then, answering his own question, he added, “It was a very good day.”