Northern California firefighters head to Santa Barbara to battle wildfire

(FOX40.COM) — Fire Stations in the Sacramento and Manteca area are sending firefighters to Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties to battle a fast-moving wildfire.

The Gifford Fire has already burned 30,519 acres as of 9:35 p.m., and it has been five percent contained, according to the Cal Fire website.

“This is a very rapidly moving fire through steep terrain with lots of dry vegetation, said Mark Nunez, Public Information Officer for Sacramento Metro Fire Department. “This type of fire, how fast it is growing, the size of it, and the amount of possible acreage it’s going to consume. It takes a lot of personnel to take on something of this size.”

Metro Fire said that there have been multiple evacuation zones that are in effect as fire activity continues to escalate. The strike team includes resources from Metro Fire, Sacramento City Fire, Cosumnes Fire, West Sacramento Fire, and Manteca Fire.

Nunez stated that crews are ready to stay in Southern California for up to two weeks if needed.

Justin Slyvia, who is the public information officer for Sacramento City Fire, said crews went into action right away as the state’s system relies on whoever is ready to go when the phone rings.

“This was an immediate need, not a plan need like we typically see. So that means they need boots on the ground to fight these fires right away,” Sylvia said.