Cal Fire to probe Ventura County response to tractor blaze that reignited into Mountain fire
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Cal Fire will examine the Ventura County Fire Department’s response to a small wildfire that subsequently rekindled from the charred skeleton of a tractor — eventually growing into the destructive Mountain fire.Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner announced Friday that his department has reached an agreement with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection for an independent review of operations during the initial wildfire, which ignited and was contained in October 2024.“Cal Fire is the nation’s leading expert on wildfire operations,” Gardner said.“No agency is better prepared to conduct this type of review and provide recommendations to enhance our future work.”The initial blaze, dubbed the Balcom fire, was started on Oct.
30, 2024, by a tractor clearing brush in the Balcom Canyon area near the community of Somis, northeast of Camarillo.California At a news conference Friday, Ventura County fire officials said they knew there were hot spots remaining, but did not think they would cause any problems.Firefighters responded with a C-130 air tanker, dropped retardant and created containment lines around the fire.
They declared the 1.8-acre fire out after about three hours.A week later, powerful Santa Ana winds arrived, picked up some bits of rubber from one of the tractor’s scorched tires and carried them over the containment area into dry vegetation, bringing the fire back to life, according to investigators.The subsequent blaze, the Mountain fire, burned nearly 20,000 acres and destroyed roughly 250 homes and structures in Camarillo Hills and nearby communities in western Ventura County.Ventura County fire officials said they followed protocol when they left the Balcom fire — clearing containment lines, dropping retardant, and using a drone with an infrared camera to identify lingering heat.California Most of the area burned by the Mountain ...