Thomas Fire closes large area of Los Padres National Forest

Forest Service officials have closed parts of Los Padres National Forest because of the Thomas Fire, the agency announced Sunday.

Access to the Ojai, Santa Barbara and Mt. Pinos ranger districts is prohibited.

The closure area runs from Highway 154 and the boundary of the Los Padres National Forest just north of its intersection with East Camino Cielo Road, then northeast along the boundary of the San Rafael and Dick Smith Wilderness Areas, the Forest Service said. The closure then continues east, south and west along the forest boundary back to the starting point.

The Thomas Fire, which started Monday night, has charred about 173,000 acres in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties and is actively burning in Los Padres National Forest, the Forest Service said.

The closure will be strictly enforced, the Forest Service said, and violating the closure could result in a $5,000 fine and/or six months in jail. There’s no time estimate on when the forest areas will reopen.

This story was originally published December 10, 2017 at 3:54 PM with the headline "Thomas Fire closes large area of Los Padres National Forest."