Blaze North of Santa Cruz Uncontained

Photo by Curtis Cartier

Two days after it started, 670 firefighters, 120 engines, and 20 aircraft have as yet been unable to get the Lockheed Fire at Bonny Doon under control. As of Friday morning it had torched 4,100 acres and was only 5 percent contained. About 2,400 locals, including the entire population of Bonny Doon, have been ordered to evacuate. The fire is especially severe because it covers an area of dry brush and timber that has not seen a fire in at least six decades.

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Lockheed Fire Rages in Bonny Doon

Davenport is serving as a staging area for crews fighting the Lockheed fire.  Photo by Curtis Cartier

The skies over Davenport were thick with acrid brown smoke Thursday morning as a wildfire raged in the Santa Cruz Mountains around Bonny Doon.  Dubbed the Lockheed fire, the blaze had torched more than 2,300 acres by midmorning after dry conditions caused what had been a relatively small fire on Wednesday to explode in size overnight. About 600 people living on Swanton Road, Warrella Truck Trail, Last Chance Road and Rancho del Oso were evacuated while more than 300 firefighters battled the flames. A mandatory evactuation order for Bonny Doon went into effect at 11am Thursday. With slide show and video.

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