Helicopter Evacuates 11 Employees in Santa Rosa Island Fire
Santa Barbara County Fire Department’s Helicopter 964 airlifted 11 National Park Service employees from Santa Rosa Island on Sunday, May 17, as the santa rosa island fire moved toward their housing. The workers were flown to Oxnard Airport without injury.
By Sunday evening, the National Park Service said the fire had grown to 5,692 acres and remained at 0% containment. The agency described it as a "full-suppression, human-caused wildfire under investigation."
Santa Rosa Island evacuation
The evacuation came after the vegetation fire ignited early Friday, May 15, on the remote oceanside of Santa Rosa Island near Ford Point in the island’s southeastern corner. Channel Islands National Park officials said an aircraft flying overhead first reported it around 4:30 a.m., and federal wildland resources were en route by 3 p.m. Friday.
Dozens of firefighters and park rangers remained on the island Sunday evening while the fire stayed active on both its eastern and western flanks. On the east side, it had reached East Point and East Point Road.
Historic structures lost
On the west side, activity had moderated but remained near the South Point Lighthouse. Two uninhabited historic structures were destroyed: Johnson’s Lee Equipment Shed on the western edge of the fire and the Wreck Line Camp Cabin on the eastern edge. An additional storage structure next to Johnson’s Lee Equipment Shed was also lost.
The National Park Service closed Santa Rosa Island to day and overnight use at least through that week, and Water Canyon Campground reservation holders were notified. The beaches and dunes of China Camp and Cluster Point, and the area between them, were also temporarily closed to visitor access.
Wind Warning on Santa Rosa
A Gale Warning remained in effect until 3 a.m. Monday, May 18, adding another hurdle for crews working on the island’s exposed terrain. A 67-year-old man had also been hoisted from shore by an Air Station Ventura helicopter on Friday after a rescue coordinated by Sector Los Angeles–Long Beach.
For anyone with plans on Santa Rosa Island, the immediate change is simple: access is restricted, staff have been moved off the island, and fire crews are still working against a blaze that had already crossed 5,000 acres by Sunday night.
