https://twitter.com/MattKellerABC7/status/920338177138745344
At least six firefighters have been injured as they tended to a growing fire in the Santa Cruz Mountains on Monday night. The blaze, dubbed Bear Fire, has consumed 271 acres in the area and is 10 percent contained as of Wednesday morning, fire officials said.
The fire is believed to have started at around 10:30 p.m. Monday and is moving out off Bear Creek Road just southwest of San Jose. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Assistant Chief Rob Sherman told NBC KCRA 3 News that evacuation orders have been issued for residents living on Bear Creek Road, Rons Road, Dons Road, Lost Valley Road, Favre Ridge and Oak Ridge. He said that so far, at least four structures have been destroyed and about 150 homes are being threatened by the fire.
The Santa Cruz Fire Department also issued voluntary evacuations for those residing in a certain zone near the fire.
**Bear Creek Fire** @ 7 am
Voluntary evacuations within red boundary on map below…
Sherman said the current plan is to attack the fire from the sky to stop it from spreading further.
“The idea is to hit it pretty hard with aircraft and hit it with ground resources at the same time,” he said to KCRA.
The cause of the fire isn’t yet known, but it’s believed to have been sparked by a house fire which spread to vegetation around it.
Cal Fire spokeswoman Angela Bernheisel said that the conditions and geography of the area has made it a challenge to try and contain the fire.
“Topography has been the major challenge on this fire,” Bernheisel told CBS San Francisco. “It has contributed to our injuries. These mountains are steep and rugged. Access is tough.”
There isn’t yet an interactive online map of the fire’s location showing affected areas, but check below for a map showing the location of the blaze as it continues to grow.
See some photos and videos from the Bear Fire below:
LIVE COVERAGE: Wildfire burning in the Santa Cruz mountains has forced at least 150 residents to evacuate: t.co/KNES49hxlO #BearFire
Helicopter heading to fire burning off Bear Creek Road. #BearFire
People currently being evacuated from Bear Creek Canyon FIre in #SantaCruz Mountains. #FB @CHP Santa Cruz t.co/wjgMCIXrYz
The fire outbreak in the Santa Cruz area comes after massive wildfires have been burnt in Northern California for over a week. The string of fires are the deadliest in state history, and have killed at least 41 people and burnt over 6,000 homes.
Click here for a map of the fires currently burning in Northern California.
