Fire closes in on Big Sur homes
Firefighters report progress in protecting a Buddhist retreat in the Los Padres National Forest.
As more than 1,000 fires continue to burn around California, flames advanced toward more homes near Big Sur today, but firefighters said they are making progress in protecting an isolated Buddhist retreat in the Los Padres National Forest.
Fire officials advised residents of Palo Colorado Canyon, a hamlet of about 250 homes, to evacuate as the Basin Complex Fire continued its advance overnight. The head of the blaze remains about three miles from homes, fire officials said.
Jennifer Gray, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service, said firefighters equipped with bulldozers are cutting fire breaks to the east of the blaze to help protect the area that includes the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center.
"We have made progress in getting those into place," Gray said, adding that more still needs to be done.
The Indians Fire to the southeast of the monastery was 89% contained on Sunday, Gray said. That fire no longer poses a threat unless weather conditions change abruptly, she said.
Statewide, 30 blazes are threatening homes and lives, with all but five burning in northern areas of California, authorities said.
More than 7,500 homes remain threatened, said Greg Renick, a spokesman for the California Office of Emergency Services. Among the buildings destroyed so far are 29 homes and one commercial property.
Renick said no new fires are threatening homes and firefighters have made progress on some blazes. But he said fire officials are concerned about the potential for scattered thunderstorms and lightning strikes through Monday, which could make the task of gaining control of the current blazes all the more difficult.
"Even without the lightning strikes," Renick said, "we're in a very dry period and there's a lot of brush that's vulnerable, so it's important that the public be very careful."
jack.leonard@latimes.com
