Solimar Fire 60% Contained

Overall, two firefighters suffered minor injuries while battling the wildfire.

Highway 101 – a major north-south route in Southern California – was closed in both directions for roughly 15 miles from state Highway 150 to state Highway 33, forcing holiday travelers to take narrow, backcountry roads.

A mandatory evacuations was in place for the Solimar Beach community while a voluntary evacuation was in effect for the Faria Beach community.

The Ventura County Fire Department said the brush fire that started northwest of the city of Ventura spread to over 1,200 acres Saturday. On Sunday, all evacuations were lifted, including Emma Woods State Beach around 5:30 p.m. The fire, dubbed the Solimar Fire, ate up about 100 acres when it broke out around 10:30 p.m. Friday.

Fire officials had earlier reported that parts of the Pacific Coast highway also were closed, but a fire department spokeswoman said only a portion that overlaps the 101 was closed.

“The fire’s going to resist our control because we’re at the end of this drought”.

Cmdr. Norm Plott of the Ventura Fire Department warned before the highway was reopened that “any openings that do happen are subject to being closed again”.

VENTURA, Calif. (AP) – Hundreds of firefighters on Sunday mopped up the remnants of a wind-whipped wildfire that threatened dozens of Southern California coastal homes.

The fire was about 60% contained Saturday evening.

Fire Battalion Chief Fred Burris said that when firefighters arrived on the scene Christmas night, they found motorists on USA 101 desperately trying to escape the path of the wildfire. Officials said that the fire was at 10 per cent containment on Saturday afternoon.

During a tour of the burned area, Ventura County fire Capt. Mike Lindbery told the Ventura County Star (http://bit.ly/1YHfObL) that the flames left barren stretches that could give way if the area gets a heavy winter rain, as expected after the new year. “Despite the challenges of high winds, steep terrain, significant brush, we were able to bring a stop to all forward progress of the fire”.

Firefighters aggressively attacked the fire, which was “stirred up by a strong north wind”, and it was knocked down, according to the Fire Department.