“Lookout” Fire 100 Percent Contained; 44 Acres

SANTA BARBARA – UPDATE – The Lookout Fire off Highway 154 and Painted Cave is 100% contained, as of Thursday afternoon. Los Padres National Forest announced via a tweet around 4 p.m. saying the fire held to 44 acres throughout the day. County Fire Captain David Sadecki tells KEY News that a total of 150 personnel cut fire lines and fought flare-ups overnight. They hope to have full containment by 6 pm Friday.Despite a stronger breeze locally, Sadecki says there are no winds on the fire.The goal today is to continue structure protection, snuff out hot spots and finish control lines.Fire investigators will begin the task of trying to determine the cause of the wildfire, at 8:30 Thursday morning. Initial reports that downed power lines sparked the blaze were dismissed hours after the fire broke out. Sadecki says the fire’s origin was in rugged terrain, tucked in one of the steep hillsides. This is near the site of the devastating Painted Cave wildfire back in June of 1990 that destroyed more than 400 homes.No homes or structures were damaged during Wednesday’s fire. However two firefighters suffered minor injuries; one was treated for a leg injury, the other for dehydration.Highway 154 is open to through traffic. Painted Cave is open only to residents.Resources assigned to the fire included 8 air tankers, 4 helicopters, 16 engines, 4 water tenders, 4 dozers, 4 hand crews with 4 additional crews ordered.The Lookout fire broke out on a large hillside just before 8:00 am Wednesday morning. Santa Barbara City and County Fire crews, and the Search and Rescue fire copter were deployed within minutes. The U-S Forest Service, which is in command of this incident, since the fire is burning in the Los Padres National Forest, as well as Montecito Fire, Vandenberg, Cal Fire, California Highway Patrol and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department worked as a united front to battle the wildfire.