Residents Flee Flames In Wealthy California Town

Residents piled into cars and fled on Saturday as surging winds drove one of the biggest fires in California’s history toward the wealthy coastal enclave of Montecito, northwest of Los Angeles.

The mandatory evacuations around Montecito and neighboring Summerland on the outskirts of Santa Barbara came as winds that had eased a day earlier roared back at around 30 mph with gusts to about 60 mph. Firefighters stood by yellow fire trucks with hoses unspooled, ready to protect the historic San Ysidro Ranch as heavy smoke rose from the coastal hills, blotting out the blue skies.
A portion of Santa Barbara also was under mandatory evacuation. The city’s zoo was under voluntary evacuation, and workers there began putting some animals into crates and kennels as a precaution.

The northbound lanes of U.S. Highway 101, coming up the coast from Los Angeles, were closed for a few hours south of Santa Barbara, with cars stopped on the freeway.

The 404-square-mile Thomas Fire was moving rapidly westward and crested Montecito Peak, just north of Montecito. Known for its star power, the enclave boasts the mansions of Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres and many other celebrities.

Winfrey expressed her dismay on her Twitter account.

“Still praying for our little town. Winds picked up this morning creating a perfect storm of bad for firefighters,” Winfrey tweeted. It was not clear if the former talk show host was in Montecito.

Pierre Henry, owner of the Bree’osh Bakery in Montecito, said he got a text to evacuate Saturday morning as the fire approached homes. He estimated the fire was about a mile away.

“The worst was the smoke,” Henry said. “You couldn’t breathe at all and it became worse when the wind started. All the ashes and the dust on the street were in the air. It was very, very frightening.”

The city, according to Henry, became an eerie scene devoid of people except for firefighters and as many as 50 firefighter trucks.

“We left everything,” Henry said. “There is nobody in Montecito. Just firefighters.”