Firefighters Help Out at Vandenberg Blaze

More than 30 firefighters and 10 engines from Ventura County were called Saturday afternoon by authorities in Santa Barbara County who were trying to put out a blaze at Vandenberg Air Force Base.

The blaze, which started at 11 a.m. near Lompoc, was threatening to move into Vandenberg Village, a residential area near the base, but no structures were burned. It had consumed nearly 1,350 acres by evening.

No injuries were reported.

Fire crews in two other parts of Santa Barbara County were fighting wildfires that together had scorched more than 400 hundred acres.

Santa Barbara County Fire Department spokesman Richard Abrams said the Ventura County crews were asked to help with the air base fire, which was moving south in open fields covered by thick chaparral. The local firefighters headed to Lompoc about 3 p.m. At about 8 p.m., the Vandenberg fire was 50% controlled, Abrams said.

The team was made up mostly of Ventura County Fire Department personnel, but also included Oxnard and Ventura city fire crews.

In all, 34 firefighters from the county were dispatched. The equipment that was sent included engines used to protect buildings and others used to directly fight the fire.

With big fires, it is typical for counties to rely on “mutual aid” agreements with neighboring municipalities.

“When they have a big fire, we help them out,” a Ventura County fire dispatcher said. “And when we have one, they help us.”