What to expect after busy start to fire season in Ventura County

A spate of brush fires ignited recently in Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley amid a heat wave that dragged on, raising temperatures 10 or more degrees above normal in spots.

Firefighters kept most of the local blazes small. Of the half dozen fires over nine days, all but one burned fewer than a dozen or so acres. Two threatened residential areas from the start, but no homes were damaged.

The busy start to the fire season comes after back-to-back wet years. Two years ago, the county got drenched by the rainiest one in years , reducing the threat of wildfires. This past winter also brought above-normal rainfall, but not as much or as late in the season.

The county may be seeing a return to a more normal pattern, said Chief Dustin Gardner of the Ventura County Fire Department.

"Our grasses are dry, and we're just seeing lots of fire starts," Gardner said.

More rain typically brings more grass , which then can lead to increased ignitions as it turns brown and crispy. At the same time, the rain also has kept moisture levels in the brush higher than normal, helping to lower the threat of larger, out-of-control wildfires.

That is, at least for now. Officials have forecast a hot summer. The region could see an above-normal threat of large wildfires in late summer and early fall.

What started Thousand Oaks, Simi fires?

Soaring temperatures in the latest heat wave have dried the grasses — fuel for fires — that built up over the consecutive wet years, said Sean Anderson, an environmental science professor at CSU Channel Islands near Camarillo.

That is likely the main component behind the recent spike in fires, Anderson said.

Four fires broke out in the Simi Valley area from June 28 to July 3. The first, called the Sentinel Fire, started on the city's north side where homes back up to open hillsides. The blaze burned nearly 5 acres before a large response that included water-dropping helicopters and an air tanker stopped it from getting bigger.

Two days later, a small fire burned less than an acre in the Santa Susana Knolls outside Simi Valley. Then on July 3, two more fires started.

The smaller Sequoia Fire burned just under 2 acres in foothills near Sequoia Avenue and Aspen Street. Then the Sharp Fire ignited across town.

The blaze that started near the 2800 block of Sharp Road quickly posed a threat to nearby residences and grew to 133 acres.

The causes of most of the recent fires are under investigation, officials said. But a blaze Friday evening ignited after a vehicle caught fire along the southbound transition of Highway 23 and Highway 101. Flames started up the adjacent hillside and burned about 13 acres along the south side of the 101.

A day later, a sixth fire ignited in open space near Arroyo View Street in the Newbury Park area. The cause of the View Fire , reported around 2 p.m. Saturday, remains under investigation. But several neighbors reported fireworks had gone off moments before blaze started, according to the fire department.

In both the View and Sharp fires that immediately threatened homes, the department sent its first engines to protect structures and get people out of harm's way, Gardner said. Air units made drops to box in the flames and hand crews and dozers worked to get around the blaze.

What will the rest of fire season bring?

As of last week, moisture levels in brush around the county sat well above the critical mark — when brush catches fire more easily and flames burn faster and farther. They also are slightly above the historical average for this time of year.

But as the above-normal heat drags on, the brush is drying out and will continue to do so, said Capt. Ryan Matheson of the county fire department.

Statewide, more than 3,500 fires have burned close to 200,000 acres so far this year, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection reported this week.

The largest erupted in Santa Barbara County Friday near Zaca Lake, sending towering columns of smoke over Los Padres National Forest land. The blaze, called the Lake Fire , had burned more than 40 square miles as of Tuesday morning.

What happens next could depend on this year's seasonal winds and ultimately the rain.

The recent fires are burning in hot, dry conditions but mostly without extreme winds, said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA. That likely will change later this summer and into the fall.

Then, areas could see strong winds mixed with critically dry fuels. There also could be more competition for firefighting aircraft and crews, Swain said during an online briefing over the weekend.

“That's when we have the potential for things to really go sideways,” he said.

With gusty Santa Ana winds, the potential for larger fires increases, Gardner said. The greater threat lasts until the area gets rain, he said.

How to get emergency alerts, protect your home

To sign up for emergency alerts in Ventura County, go to readyventuracounty.org/vc-alert . For information during a wildfire, visit vcemergency.com .

Local and state fire agencies have lists of tips to protect homes from wildfires at readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-ready/hardening-your-home/ and vcfd.org .

Cheri Carlson covers the environment and county government for the Ventura County Star. Reach her at cheri.carlson@vcstar.com or 805-437-0260.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: What to expect after busy start to fire season in Ventura County