Highway 101 reopens after fire erupts near Ventura

A Dutch family, which came to California for the holidays, had a Christmas night they’ll never forget as they were forced to flee the blaze in Solimar Beach near Ventura.

What grew to a 1,250-acre blaze began about 10:45 p.m. Friday north of Solimar Beach, a coastal community 20 miles north of Ventura, scorching a ridgetop oil and gas field north of Highway 101 and Pacific Coast Highway, firefighters said.

While the fire prompted evacuations of Solimar Beach residents and campers at Emma Wood State Beach, firefighters kept the blaze away from homes and other structures.

“Even if we do open up the roadways, it’s still not a contained fire”. Both the sides of the scenic 101 highway were closed overnight from State Route 33 to State Route 150.

The Ventura County Fire Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department, Ventura City Fire Department, Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Santa Paula City Fire Department, CAL-FIRE, Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and California Highway Patrol are all part of the agencies collaborating to stop the fire. But all mandatory evacuations are expected to be lifted at 5 p.m. Saturday.

Ventura County Fire spokesman Tom Kruschke says the fire is about 10 percent contained. There will be strong north winds Saturday night, before the winds shift and turn to the northeast on Sunday morning. That means firefighters will face a wildfire that will change directions, the Ventura County Fire Department said on its Facebook page.

About 145 firefighters were at the scene of the fire, according to the Ventura County Fire Department. Caltrans first must assess the freeway because the fire caused damage to the medians that separate traffic, Ventura County Fire Capt. Mike Lindbery said.

The Solimar Beach community, with 50 to 60 homes, and a nearby campsite were under a mandatory evacuation order, while a voluntary one had been issued for the Faria Beach community, where there are 30 to 40 homes, fire officials said.

Windy conditions should prevail into Sunday, at which point a wind advisory should still be in effect.