Summit Fire
Location: 10 miles west of Morgan Hill, 7 miles S of Los Gatos, Santa Cruz Co., Santa Clara Co., CA
Specific Location: Eureka Canyon in the Santa Cruz Mountains, near the intersection of Summit and Loma Prieta Roads, Ormsby Road, Eureka Canyon Road
Date of Origin: 05/22/2008, reported ~5:30 a.m.
Cause: human-caused
Situation as of 06/09/08
Total Personnel: 118
Size: 4,270 acres
Percent Contained: 100%
Costs to Date: $19,300,000
Structures Destroyed: 64 outbuildings , 35 homes
Mop up and patrol continued with emphasis on locating the hot spots identified during last night’s IR flight. Stump holes, dozer piles and large fuels (mainly in draws) are still being found smoldering within containment lines.
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Situation as of 05/28/08 6:00 PM
Total Personnel: 1,330
Size: 4,270 acres
Percent Contained: 100%
Costs to Date: $13,400,000
Observed Fire Behavior: Smoldering heavy fuels in the fire interior with no flaming front.
Demobilization of resources continued today. A damage assessment flight found additional structural damage today. Ground assessment teams are determining the extent of that damage. The incident will transition to the local unit on 5/30/08.
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Situation as of 05/27/08 6:00 PM
Total Personnel: 2,519
Size: 4,270 acres
Percent Contained: 100%
Costs to Date: $12,220,000
Full containment achieved today. Burning continues in the interior. Control (minimal flames and flame lengths) expected by Friday, when transition to local fire units is also planned. All road closures and evacuations were lifted today.
Structures Destroyed: 63 outbuildings , 31 primary residences (homes). Updated totals of structures destroyed resulted from completion of damage inspection.
An unknown number of firefighters are suffering from severe poison oak exposure.
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Situation as of 05/27/08 AM
Total Personnel: 2,631
Size: 4,270 acres
Percent Contained: 85%
Costs to date: $11,200,000
Fire managers are hoping for full containment Tuesday evening followed by full control Friday.
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Situation as of 05/26/08 6:00 PM
Total Personnel: 2,631
Size: 4,270 acres
Percent Contained: 80%
Latest damage assessment: 36 primary residences, 18 outbuildings destroyed. Acreage increase due to backfiring last night.
Costs to Date: $10,650,000
Demobilization of Type 1 engines and bulldozers today. Slow upslope spread toward Summit Road as fire transitioned into brush vegetation. Increase in activity in the interior of the fire due to change in weather pattern, otherwise no significant fire behavior observed. Continue mop-up and patrol tonight, holding and improving fire lines.
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Situation as of 05/26/08 8:00 AM
Total Personnel: 2,953
Size: 3,970 acres
Percent Contained: 70%
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Situation as of 05/25/08 8:00 AM
Total Personnel: 2,886
Size: 3,870 acres
Percent Contained: 50%
Cost to date: $6,100,000
Evacuations remain in effect. Control problems include establishing line in steep terrain and heavy, thick dead fuels. The fire made short runs during the night. No significant fire expansion.
In the Summit Fire area, skies will continue to be mostly cloudy today with scattered showers expected in the area. There is about a 30% chance of showers over the fire. Winds in the area will be quite light, a bit variable and easterly this morning, then likely becoming SW this afternoon from 2-10 mph and gusty.
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Situation as of 05/24/08 8:00 AM
Total Personnel: 3,004
Size: 3,400 acres
Percent Contained: 25%
New evacuations overnight for the Santa Clara Co. communities of Sveadal and residents of McPhee Road. Control problems include establishing line in steep terrain and heavy, thick dead fuels.
Fire under the management of Cal Fire Type 1 IMT (Waterman), with 94 crews, 289 engines, 13 helicopters, 2 air tankers.
Reported 17 homes and 11 commercial structures destroyed by the Summit Fire.
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Situation as of 05/23/08 6:00 AM
Total Personnel: 1,200
Size: 3,100 acres
Percent Contained: 20%
The communities of Croy, Uvas, Summit, and Corralitos are threatened. Evacuations and road closures are in effect. 500 residential, 20 commercial structures threatened.
Winds mild, 2 to 4 mph. Ocean fog cooling, damping the fire.
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Situation as of 05/22/08 9:00 PM
Total Personnel: 900+
Size: 3,000+ acres
Percent Contained: unknown
More than 20 homes have burned. Fire headed southwesterly toward Corralitos and Watsonville. Mandatory evacutation orders for Buzzard Lagoon, Vaca del Sol, Lower Highland Road, Ormsby and Mount Madonna roads, as well as Brown’s Valley and Apple Valley.
Firefighters were unsuccessful at holding the fire at Eureka Canyon. The fire now heading into Buzzard’s Lagoon and toward Nicene State Park.
Fire has been crowning in 80-to-100-feet-tall trees including pine and redwood.
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Situation as of 05/22/08
Total Personnel: 900+, expected by 4 p.m.
Size: 4,000+ acres, expected by 4 p.m.
Percent Contained: 0%, noon
Summary: Grass fire near Highway 17 and Summit Road spread south in 50 mph winds. Mandatory evacuations homes and schools in the area. Twelve structures reported destroyed by noon, (15 to 20 unconfirmed). Two evacuation sites have been set up, at the Los Gatos Town Center and at the Santa Cruz Co. Fairgrounds in Watsonville. Several roadways in the area have been shut down, but Highway 17 remained open after 10 a.m.
Voluntary evacuations involved 1,400 residences by 1 p.m. in the area around Eureka Canyon Road, the Summit, Hazel Dell Road, Corralitos Road north of Browns Valley, Rider Ridge and Buzzard Lagoon — residents there were called and instructed to voluntarily evacuate.
CalFire reports eight air tankers, nine helicopters and about 900 personnel working on the fire by this afternoon. Resources ordered and either on scene or en route included 40 hand crews, more than 20 engine strike teams, 16 kinds of aircraft, six water tenders and six bulldozers. A command post was established at Corallitos Fire Station.
