Wildfire in Santa Cruz County prompts evacuations [Updated]
A wildfire burning today in Santa Cruz County has consumed about 800 acres and prompted the evacuation of about 150 homes in neighborhoods north of Watsonville, fire officials said.
[Updated 4 p.m.: Fire officials said their earlier estimate of 800 acres burned was incorrect. They now say the fire has burned 600 acres. Winds are fading, and a trailer and two outbuildings have burned. The fire is 20% contained.]
The fire broke out about 3 a.m. in an area off California 17 on the border of Santa Cruz and Santa Clara counties, said Cherie Alver of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Mandatory evacuations were issued about 6 a.m., and the fire is 5% contained.
Warm, windy weather, with gusts up to 35 mph is fueling the blaze, which is burning on the south side of the mountains.
The cause of the wildfire has not been determined, Alver said. About 1,200 firefighters are expected to be on the scene this afternoon, said Jim Crawford, a public information officer with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The fire is burning near a mountainous area where a wildfire last year destroyed 29 homes and threatened the Mount Madonna retreat center.
-- Nicole Santa Cruz
