Gifford Fire approaches 130,000 acres as crews ignite strategic burns in SLO County
The Gifford Fire grew by around 3,000 acres overnight as fire crews initiated strategic burns and worked to corral the wildfire away from major population centers in San Luis Obispo County.
Estimated at around 125,648 acres as of 4 p.m on Tuesday, the fire reached 128,974 acres on Wednesday morning, with containment holding at 37% from the previous day, according to emergency services app Watch Duty.
According to a morning update from Los Padres National Forest, fire crews carried out strategic firing operations to reinforce containment lines around the Garcia Wilderness, taking advantage of favorable overnight conditions.
Aided by firefighting aircraft, crews worked to identify hotspots and smoldering areas, while firefighters monitored the south side of the fire for lingering heat sources, according to the update.
Firing operations will continue in the Garcia Wilderness on Wednesday, with elevated smoke levels anticipated along the northern border of the fire, according to the update.
Containment on all sides will continue on Wednesday, as temperatures are expected to cool from the previous day.
Dry conditions and 20 mph ridgetop winds shifting from northeasterly gusts at night to north-northwesterly during the day were expected to continue through Wednesday, according to the Los Padres National Forest.
Temperatures are expected to continue cooling on Thursday, and minimum humidity is expected through the afternoon most days.
Heading into the first week of school in Santa Margarita, where the incident command post is located, officials started working with the San Luis Obispo Police Department to set up a special route for firefighters exiting camp that avoids crosswalks and helps keep children safe on their first day back to school.
Evacuation orders continue to expand
As of Wednesday morning, the following locations were under evacuation orders in San Luis Obispo County: LPF-015, LPF-016, LPF-017, LPF-019, SLC-337, LPF-018, LPF-014, SLC-263, LPF-011, LPF-013, SLC-297, SLC-225, SLC-240, SLC-264, SLC-298, SLC-239, SLC-262, SLC-334, SLC-311, SLC-261, LPF-009, LPF-012, SLC-259, SLC-260, SLC-296, LPF-010, SLC-222, SLC-223, SLC-193, SLC-194, SLC-221 and SLC-224.
To view all areas under evacuation orders and warnings, visit readyslo.org/GiffordFire.
A total of 4,946 personnel are now assigned to the fire with four structures destroyed and 10 injuries reported, three to civilians and seven to firefighters, according to Cal Fire’s status page.
This story was originally published August 13, 2025 at 10:25 AM.
