A prescribed burn that started Tuesday on a ranch near Los Alamos escaped control about 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, prompting a call for multiple fire engines and aerial tankers to respond as the uncontrolled blaze quickly grew, according to emergency radio traffic.
Although radio broadcasts from firefighters said it went from 20 to 50 acres in a short time, public information officer Mike Eliason said it was 10 to 20 acres on his Twitter account.
The controlled burn for wildfire risk reduction and rangeland improvement was planned to last three days, representatives for Santa Barbara County Fire Department and Air Pollution Control District said. The burn is taking place on the Bar M Ranch, also known as the Barham Ranch, about 4 miles southeast of Los Alamos on Highway 101.