Late Thursday night, firefighters crouched behind their engine as flames driven by northern 35-mph sundowner winds advanced toward El Capitan State Beach — captured by Santa Barbara County Fire’s Mike Eliason in a now-iconic photograph of the Scherpa Fire.
More than 30 hours after the fire first charred Refugio Canyon — at Rancho La Scherpa on 2540 Refugio Road — over 1,200 firefighters from across the state struggled to put out the wildfire, which grew to 4,000 acres of rough terrain, as of Friday morning, according to Los Padres National Forest. It was 5 percent contained.
At about 5 a.m. Friday, Highway 101 was reopened after it was shut down overnight — this time for 35 miles between Buellton’s Highway 246 and Goleta’s Winchester Canyon Road. Traffic in the area was heavy. Calle Real was closed from El Capitan State Beach to Refugio Road.