Fire closes Hwy. 101 lanes near Gaviota tunnel

Update, 7 p.m.:

All northbound lanes are now open, according to the California Highway Patrol. One southbound lane remains closed at the Gaviota rest area.

Update, 5:30 p.m.:

As of 4:45 p.m., one lane in each direction on Highway 101 had been reopened, but motorists were being urged to use caution in the area because of ongoing firefighting activities.

Original story:

Highway 101 was shut down in the Gaviota area Thursday afternoon due to a vegetation fire that was sparked by a vehicle accident, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The crash occurred in the southbound lanes just shortly after 3 p.m. just south of the Gaviota tunnel.

Santa Barbara County fire crews were on scene and were being assisted by water-dropping helicopters.

Southbound traffic was diverted at Highway 1 while northbound motorists were stopped at Mariposa Reina, the CHP said.

The initial estimate for the blaze was about an acre, mainly in the center divider, according to emergency radio traffic.

As of 3:50 p.m., forward progress of the flames reportedly had been stopped.

Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.

This story was originally published October 19, 2017 at 4:16 PM with the headline "Fire closes Hwy. 101 lanes near Gaviota tunnel."