The Alisal fire swelled to more than 15,000 acres, marking Southern California’s first major wildfire of the season.
The fire was burning near Rancho del Cielo, which was once owned by Ronald and Nancy Reagan and was known as the Western White House during his presidency. Fire crews were protecting the ranch where Reagan hosted world leaders.
The fire erupted Monday on a ridge and swept toward the ocean, forcing the closure of U.S. 101, the only major highway on that section of the coast. Evacuation orders and warnings were in place for ranches and several rural communities.
A firefighting airplane drops fire retardant ahead of the Alisal fire near Goleta on Wednesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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A firefighter observes a plume of smoke from the Alisal fire near Goleta on Wednesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
A firefighting helicopter drops water on the Alisal fire near Goleta on Wednesday.
(Luis Sinco)
Fire retardant is dropped on the Alisal fire near Goleta on Wednesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
A firefighter puts out hot spots in the burn zone of the Alisal fire near Goleta on Wednesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
A plume of smoke from the Alisal fire near Goleta as an aircraft drops fire retardant Wednesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters battle the Alisal fire along the 101 Freeway near Goleta.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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A firefighter battles the Alisal fire along the 101 Freeway near Goleta.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
A firefighter battles the Alisal fire along the 101 Freeway near Goleta on Tuesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Lane Morrison of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection puts out flames in a pen near a home along Refugio Road.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A man waters down dry vegetation as the Alisal fire burns at the edges of a ranch near Goleta on Tuesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
A man uses a garden hose to water down dry vegetation as the Alisal fire burns at the edges of a ranch near Goleta on Tuesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters put out spot fires ahead of the Alisal fire along the 101 Freeway near Goleta on Tuesday.
(Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
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The Alisal fire burns along the 101 Freeway near Goleta on Tuesday.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Angela Yates of Santa Barbara County Animal Services transfers a goat to a trailer after evacuating it from the ranch of Brian Stuart.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Eric Hvolboll watches the Alisal fire from his La Paloma Ranch in Venadeto Canyon.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Mailboxes burn along Refugio Road.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters from California Conservation Corps prepare the ground as flames advance.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters from Los Padres National Forest monitor the flames.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Firefighters from California Conservation Corps prepare as flames from the Alisal Fire move toward La Paloma Ranch.
(Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters extinguish flames Tuesday afternoon.
(Mike Eliason / Santa Barbara County Fire )
A firefighting helicopter heads to a refill station after dropping a load of water on the Alisal fire.
(Mike Eliason / Santa Barbara County Fire Department)
Santa Barbara County firefighters standing in the northbound lanes of the 101 Freeway spray water on the advancing fire Monday night near Refugio Beach.
(Mike Eliason / Santa Barbara County Fire Department)
A smoke column from the Alisal fire can be seen behind former President Reagan’s Rancho del Cielo in Santa Barbara County.
(Mike Eliason / Santa Barbara County Fire Department)
The Alisal fire broke out Monday in Santa Barbara County and quickly grew.
Al Seib was a photographer and videographer for the Los Angeles Times from 1984 to 2022. His photos have won numerous awards from national and international photographer associations. Seib’s work has helped win four Pulitzer Prizes for breaking news reporting awarded to The Times’ staff: the Los Angeles riots in 1993, the Northridge earthquake in 1995, the Southern California wildfires in 2004 and the San Bernardino shootings in 2016.
