Progress stopped on vegetation fire that forced evacuation in northern SLO County
The so-called Snake Fire burned about 10 acres of vegetation in the hills east of Santa Margarita on Thursday.
The fire ignited between Highway 58 and Santa Margarita Lake, on Huer Huero Road near the intersection with Parkhill Road at about 1:31 p.m., according to the emergency response application PulsePoint.
When firefighters arrived on the scene, the blaze was “a couple of acres burning in grass oak woodland,” Cal Fire said in a post on X.
An air tanker and helicopters responded to the fire, according to discussion on the police scanner, and the ALERT California camera network showed aircraft dropping retardant on the site.
An ambulance was en route to the scene of the fire at about 2:02 p.m. according to discussion on the police scanner.
Meanwhile, the fire had expanded to a 10-acre plot of grass and oak woodland by 2 p.m.
The blaze then hopped from grass to brush, which burns hotter.
Ten structures were in the area but not immediately threatened by the blaze, according to the police scanner.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation warning at 1:45 p.m. on the north side of Parkhill Road from Huer Huero Road to Las Pilitas Road, agency spokesperson Tony Cipolla said.
The warning asked residents to be prepared to evacuate if conditions worsened, he said.
Cal Fire halted the forward progress of the blaze at 8 acres at about 2:30 p.m., according to discussion on the police scanner.
This story was originally published October 17, 2024 at 1:52 PM.
