Plaskett Fire overtakes Timber Fire in size; over 54,000 acres burned in Big Sur

By Tim Fang

Two wildfires burning in California’s Big Sur region have burned more than 54,000 acres, officials said, as the fast-moving Plaskett Fire has now overtaken the Timber Fire in size.

According to Cal Fire, the fires are the two largest burning in the state as of Wednesday. The combined acreage burned is more than 84 square miles, an area larger than the city of Oakland.

“Aggressive Growth” on Plaskett Fire

Cal Fire officials said the Plaskett Fire burning in far southern Monterey County burned 29,076 acres as of about 2:24 p.m. Wednesday, up from 15,479 acres on Monday morning and 8,241 acres on Sunday morning. Containment remains at 1%.

“The fire continued aggressive growth during the previous operational period, primarily along the eastern perimeter as it pushes into Fort Hunter Liggett. Steep terrain and heavy fuels continue to drive fire behavior,” officials said in a Tuesday morning update.

In a statement on Monday, officials said the fire reached areas that had not burned in more than 50 years.

The fire, burning in far southern Monterey County east of the community of Plaskett, was first reported on the morning of August 26. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Timber Fire Update

The Timber Fire, burning about 25 miles to the north, has burned 25,001 acres as of Wednesday afternoon. Containment is at 22%.

“Crews continue strengthening established control lines and actively mopping up along the Highway 1 corridor, while suppression repair work continues from Pfeiffer Camp south,” officials said in their Tuesday morning update.

Officials added that crews were connecting completed dozer line in other parts of the fire to minimize the spread of the fire inland.

The Timber Fire was first reported on the night of Aug. 8 in the Los Padres National Forest. Officials have not determined the cause.

Cooler Weather Returning

Conditions on Wednesday were cooler in the area, with light winds and high relative humidity, which were helping moderate the fire behavior and allowing crews to largely hold fire’s progress.

Highs on Wednesday were expected to range from 63 degrees on the coast to low 70s inland. No precipitation was forecast.

Evacuation / Highway Closure Info

Multiple evacuation orders, evacuation warnings and shelter-in-place orders remain in effect for both the Plaskett and Timber fires. Most of the evacuation orders and warnings are in Monterey County, while three zones in northern San Luis Obispo County are under evacuation warnings.

Fire shelters have been established at the Carmel Mission Inn conference room in Carmel and the Cambria Veterans Memorial Building in Cambria.

Up-to-date evacuation information can be found at alertmry.org/alerts. A map of current evacuation orders and warnings can be found at project.genasys.com.

Meanwhile, Highway 1 continues to be closed to through traffic along the Big Sur coast, Caltrans said. Officials have not provided an update on when the road would reopen.

To the north, a closure stretches from mile marker 56 near the Little Sur River to mile marker 45 near the Big Sur Post Office. Caltrans said a closure to the south stretches from the Monterey County / San Luis Obispo County line to mile marker 16 near Pacific Valley.