As of 10:45 a.m. Wednesday, all evacuation orders in regards to the Cave Fire have been lifted, according to Santa Barbara County officials.
The county sent out a tweet stating: “#CaveFire Updated — All Evacuation Orders & Warnings have been lifted in Santa Barbara County. Evacuated residents may now return home. Use caution and stay alert to surroundings & changing conditions in impacted areas. For related road closures info visit ReadySBC.org.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Santa Barbara County Fire Department officials praised residents.
“We thank you for helping the community as a whole work together to keep everyone safe.
Incident Command estimates 4,367 acres have burned with 20 percent containment.
The fire department indicated that “the overnight rain helped (firefighters) battle significantly and that number will grow.
“Stubborn smokes still exist, so (firefighters) will remain on scene & Hwy 154 will remain closed. Resources will begin demobilization today.”
Local resources will take over firefighting operations until the Cave Fire is fully contained.
Firefighters paused operations due to the risk of rock flows caused by rainy conditions in the fire area last night and early this morning.
The forecast calls for more rain on Thanksgiving, giving way to partly sunny skies on Friday and the looming threat of more rain all weekend.
This is an ongoing news story, please check back for more updates throughout the day.
email: pgonzalez@newspress.com
