Updated: 5:19 a.m. Aug. 4
First discovered: 33 days ago, 6:07 a.m. July 2
Initial location: Cuyama Highway and Gypsum Canyon, West of New Cuyama, San Luis Obispo County, Calif.
Fire unit: Los Padres National Forest
Fire type: Wildfire
Fire name: 2025 Madre Fire
2025 Madre Fire initially started 6:07 a.m. July 2 in San Luis Obispo County, California.
It has burned 80,779 acres after being active for 33 days. By Monday morning, the fire crew successfully encircled the entire perimeter of the fire in control lines. The cause is, however, still being investigated.
Fuels involved in this wildfire, according to InciWeb: “Short Grass (1 foot) Tall Grass (2.5 feet) Chaparral (6 feet) The primary carrier of fire is grass and chapparal with an oak hardwood overstory. The area has minimal previous fire history. These fuels are positioned on steep nearly inaccessible terrain with limited access points for ground resources.”
Incident description
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More reports from InciWeb:
Incident overview:
“AIR QUALITY: AirNow.gov | San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control District | INITIAL SITUATION: The Madre Fire broke out shortly after 1:00 pm on Wednesday, July 2, along Highway 166. The fire was estimated at 9,000 acres acres as mapped by fire air intel and is burning east-northeast onto the Carrizo Plain. Los Padres is in Unified Command with CALFIRE SLU and the Bureau of Land Management. A full response was initiated that included seven air tankers, and two helicopters along with multiple engines and hand crews. CURRENT SITUATION: As of July 26, the Madre Fire is 100 percent contained and has been declared OUT. EVACUATIONS:There are no evacuations. AREA CLOSURES: Please see Emergency Closure Order The Los Padres National Forest has issued a temporary closure of the Rockfront Ranch OHV recreation site, as well as the Gifford Trail located in the Santa Lucia Ranger District. This closure is for the safety of the public. For more information on closures for the Los Padres NF, please reach out to one of the district offices KNOW WHERE YOU CAN FLY: Drones pose a serious risk to firefighting and can cause air operations to cease. When drones interfere with firefighting efforts, a wildfire has the potential to grow larger and cause more damage. A FAA Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in effect and any private aircraft or drone that violates the TFR could face serious criminal charges. For more information on drones the public can visit the FAA’s website at www. KnowBeforeYouFly.org “If you fly, we can’t! ”.”
Please note that this incident overview is an automatically published and unreviewed quote from InciWeb. Therefore it might be incomplete, hard to read or include misspelled words.
Fire containment
What does 100% containment mean?
Note that full containment doesn’t mean the fire is completely out. In this case, it means that firefighters have managed to get a line completely around the wildfire’s perimeter and it is now stopped from spreading. A fully contained wildfire may continue to burn within the containment perimeter but is not likely to spread.
However, there’s a significant difference between containing and controlling a wildfire. After the fire is fully contained, the next step is to control it. Controlling a fire means ensuring that the fire can’t spread or cross the containment line.
Containment is part of a larger plan for managing a wildfire. It is normally expressed as a percentage and it refers to how much of the fire perimeter has been surrounded/enclosed by a control line that firefighters create. The containment percentage indicates a certain level of control, but it doesn’t always correlate to safety level. Also, it’s important to note that containment doesn’t mean a fire is out.
How is containment measured?
The incident’s central command constantly receives progress reports from firefighters on the ground. As the fireline is constructed, inspected or reinforced, mappers record those details to adjust the containment percentage. The percentage tells the public how much of the fire perimeter is believed to not go beyond the control lines.
Source: InciWeb