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Thomas Fire Still Growing Under Longest Running Red Flag Warning

Aqua image of Thomas Fire
Brown smoke continues to spew from the Thomas Fire in this image captured by the Aqua satellite on December 14, 2017.

Brown smoke continues to spew from the Thomas Fire in this image captured by the Aqua satellite on December 14, 2017. A red flag warning which has been active for the last 12 days, the longest in California’s history, continues today. The Thomas Fire now stands at 252,500 and if the fire spreads another 2,000 acres, it will move into the number three spot. Not an auspicious record to hold. Close to 1000 structures have destroyed and another 218 damaged during this outbreak and one firefighter fatality has been attributed to the blaze according to CAL FIRE. The fire is 35% contained and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

The weather continues to be the catalyst for this fire. The worst possible conditions for fire growth are still in place. High winds with gusts up to 40 mph in Santa Barbara and up to 55 mph in Ventura County with low humidity at the 10-20 percent range will continue through Saturday evening. These conditions cause extensive fire growth, not to mention poor air quality due to smoke and ash in the area.

NASA’s Aqua satellite collected this natural-color image with the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, MODIS, instrument. NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response Team, GSFC. Caption by Lynn Jenner with information from Inciweb and CAL FIRE.