Santa Rosa Island Fire burns nearly 18,500 acres off Southern California coast
A brush fire burning on Santa Rosa Island has burned nearly 18,500 acres in the Channel Islands National Park, according to the U.S. National Park Service.
The blaze was reported on Friday afternoon at around 4:20 p.m. between Ford Point and South Point on the southern side of Santa Rosa Island, firefighters said.
Within three hours of ignition, Cal Fire officials, who were assisting the National Park Service with tracking the size of the blaze, said that more than 1,200 acres had burned. On Saturday night, the fire was mapped at 5,690 acres and by 4:31 p.m. Sunday, they said it was 10,0029 acres.
A week later, on Saturday, May 23,, firefighters said that the fire was 18,379 acres and 87% contained after water-dropping helicopters were finally able to reach the area and begin working on mitigating the flames.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. At least 70 firefighters and park rangers were battling the flames, according to NPS officials, who also said that there are no visitors on the island and that flames are being fueled by dense vegetation and strong winds blowing in the area.
The National Weather Service issued a Gale Warning for the area, which is expected to remain in place until at least 3 a.m. on Monday.
Two historic structures, Johnson's Lee Equipment Shed and Wreck Line Camp Cabin, were destroyed by the fire, which NPS officials said was a "full-suppression human-caused wildfire." They further noted that the status of the historic South Point Lighthouse is unknown as fire continued to burn nearby on Sunday afternoon.
On Friday, the U.S. Coast Guard officials said that they rescued a 67-year-old man from shore. They later said that they were investigating the possibility that the blaze was started by flares set off by the man, who crashed his boat onto the island and was signaling for SOS.
Santa Rosa Island is one of five islands located off the Southern California coast in the Pacific Ocean. Officials say that thousands of years of isolation have created unique animals, plants and archeological resources that are found nowhere else on Earth. They said that at least six plant species are only located on Santa Rosa Island.
Officials said that the island would be closed until at least June 6 due to the fire. They also said that all Water Canyon Campground reservations had been canceled.
