On April 20, at 2:30pm Ventura City Fire personnel responded to a reported grass fire along the 101 freeway adjacent to railroad tracks and an auto mall. Initial arriving units found a wind driven fire, approx 50’x50′, burning quickly through light to medium fuels, and moving South along the right shoulder of the Southbound 101 freeway. Engine company and hand crew personnel worked steadily to fully contain and extinguish the fire, using hand tools and hose lines, while apparatus shuttled tanks of water from hydrants in a nearby industrial area back up onto the freeway. Traffic on the Southbound 101 was heavily impacted, due to both heavy smoke and multiple fire apparatus operating, however railroad activity was not affected. The estimated final size of the area burned was approximately 1/4 acre, with no infrastructure or property being reported damaged. The origin of the fire was adjacent to a homeless encampment, however the exact cause is still undetermined.
