Cal Poly students and staff flee as fire burns Swanton Pacific Ranch
Cal Poly’s 3,200-acre Swanton Pacific Ranch in Santa Cruz County burned as the CZU August Lightning Complex fires swept through area, according to an email sent by President Jeffery Armstrong to the campus community on Thursday.
The fire that burned the ranch late Tuesday night was one of several in the area, according to Cal Fire, that have burned a cumulative 40,000 acres through Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties.
Jacob Dixon, a third-year animal science major and the livestock and rangeland technician at the ranch who was there before the fire hit, said he and the others there knew the fire had been spreading to the north of the facility but didn’t expect it to reach them.
“Obviously, that shifted pretty quickly,” Dixon said. “It was pretty scary, but we were all pretty prepared and able to get out quickly.”
There were about 15 to 20 students and staff at the ranch before the fire reached the facility, Dixon said. All evacuated safely and are now staying at a hotel in Santa Cruz.
The damage to the ranch and its facilities is currently unknown as the fire is still active in the region, Armstrong wrote in his email, and further details will be released as they are known.
“We ask that you keep the Swanton Pacific Ranch and College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences teams in your thoughts, but refrain from reaching out directly to offer assistance to keep lines of communication open for emergency personnel,” Armstrong wrote.
This story was originally published August 20, 2020 at 10:24 PM.
