The Loma Fire

by Bethany Montgomery

Where Did The Loma Fire Occur?

The Loma fire began in the Santa Cruz Mountains on September 26, 2016. This fire lasted for 5 days. It was finally 100% contained on October 1, 2016. Many people were involved in this dangerous path of the Loma fire. This fire burned over 4,000 acres of land in its path.

How Was The Loma Fire Contained?

This huge fire took a while to be completely put out and contained. There were many people working on it throughout the course of the 5 days. They worked all day and all night. This included 711 firefighters and fire rescuers, 28 fire trucks, 1 helicopter, 5 bulldozers, and 14 fire hydrants. This is how many people and equipment were used to stops the fire from continuing its path of destruction through the dry mountain.

What Caused This Fire To Start?

No one is 100% positive about what started this destructive fire. However, local residents and investigators suspect that the Loma fire was caused by a local marijuana producer. There are no clues as to if this pot farm was the cause or not for this fire. Investigators are doing their best to try and find answers as to if the growth of marijuana is the leading cause or not.

How Many Structures Were Destroyed?

There were 28 total structures which were destroyed during the time of the fire. 12 of these buildings were people’s homes. They lost everything. All of their belongings and sentimental valuables were taken from them with no warning. They had to evacuate immediately leaving zero time to gather items or belongings to take with them. The other 16 structures are other buildings other than homes. Everything that was destroyed on the path of this fire was not foreseen. Many people hoped for the best, but what was destroyed was horrible to watch. 300 structures were threatened, so the amount of buildings that were actually destroyed is better than 300 structures being completely destroyed.

How Many Other Fires Have Occurred Near This Region?

Many other fires have already occurred around the same region. Firefighters all around California have been fighting fires that began on the same day. As of September 26, 2016, these were the other fires that started in California. These fires are only a few from around the state of California. Many more have occurred due to the hot dry weather.

The Marshes fire began at 12:20 pm located north of the Don Pedro Reservoir in Tuolomne County. This fire destroyed 1,000 acres of land. What caused this fire to occur was a vehicle parked in dry grass.

The Sawmill fire began at 10:43 am located 10 miles east of Cloverdale in Sonoma County. The amount of land destroyed during this fire was 1,500 acres. The cause of this fire, however, is unknown.