The 700-acre wildfire along California’s scenic Big Sur coast was started by hot embers from a “pile burning operation,” CalFire said Tuesday night.
The blaze, named Colorado Fire for its origin in the Palo Colorado Canyon, quickly approached the state’s coast on Friday evening, driven by wind gusts of up to 50 mph. Cal Fire said high winds blew hot embers from the pile burning operation onto nearby vegetation, which then ignited the blaze, forcing 500 residents to evacuate on Friday.
The evacuation order remained in effect Tuesday evening, and Highway 1 from Palo Colorado Road to the Bixby Creek Bridge is closed in both directions with no reopening date.
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“Currently, this stretch of road contains many potential hazards including fire, rockfall and heavy emergency service vehicles,” Monterey County said. “Safety is our number one priority. Increased traffic on the roadway could create additional hazards.”
Only one structure was damaged in the blaze, according to CalFire, and the blaze is 45% contained as of Tuesday night.
The Monterey County Health Department issued a boil water advisory Sunday for those in the Colorado Fire area due to potential damage to water system infrastructure.
