Multiple spot fires spark along Highway 101, slow traffic in SLO County
Update, 12:40 p.m.:
Forward progress was stopped on the fires burning along northbound Highway 101 as of 12:36 p.m., Cal Fire said on X.
Original story:
Several spot fires sparked along Highway 101 in southern San Luis Obispo County on Monday morning.
The small vegetation fires were reported along the northbound side of the roadway just south of Nipomo around 11:50 a.m., according to the California Highway Patrol’s incident information page.
By noon, the fires had burned approximately 2 acres with a potential spread up to 25 acres, according to emergency scanner traffic.
The blazes had a slow-to-moderate rate of spread in grass, according to the wildfire tracking app Watch Duty.
There was no immediate threat to structures in the area, emergency scanner traffic said.
The No. 2 lane on Highway 101 was “closed indefinitely” near the Highway 166 exit as of 12:02 p.m., the CHP page said.
The fires did appear to be slowing traffic through the area, according to the Caltrans QuickMap.
CHP’s San Luis Obispo office warned drivers to be careful and expect delays on the highway while emergency personnel are working to put out the fires, the agency said in a post on X.
This story was originally published July 13, 2026 at 12:14 PM.
