Gifford Fire along Highway 166 grows to over 130,000 acres; Evacuation Orders & Warnings in Effect
Caleb Nguyen
SAN LUIS OBISPO AND SANTA BARBARA COUNTIES, Calif. – The Gifford Fire has grown to 131,605 acres, larger than July’s Madre Fire, making it the largest wildfire this year in California. It is near Gifford Trailhead on Highway 166 near the eastern edges of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties.
As of Monday, Aug. 17, the fire is 97 percent contained with some Evacuation Orders and Warnings being downgraded or removed for the response that began on the first day of August. Information for each county impacted is detailed below.
Heavy smoke has been seen across the Central Coast and air quality alerts and warnings were issued for parts of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
For the latest on air quality across Santa Barbra County, visit here and for current air quality information for San Luis Obispo County, click here.
La Panza 2 camera at the northern edge of the fire captured at 4:52 p.m. on Aug. 5, 2025.
Nine people have been injured during the fire response shared the Los Padres National Forest.
Santa Barbara County Evacuation Information
Evacuation orders and warnings in Santa Barbara County have been issued for areas south of Highway 166 which forms the northern boundary on the county including:
East of the Willow Springs trailhead and West of Cottonwood Canyon Road
East of School House Road and West of Aliso Canyon Road
East of Cottonwood Canyon Road and West of School House Road
Upper Tepusquet Canyon
Those evacuations are shown in the image below with the fire boundary shown in bright red, Evacuation Orders highlighted in light red, and Evacuation Warnings highlighted in yellow. The dotted black line surrounded by yellow is the county border which roughly matches the path of now-closed Highway 166.
A temporary evacuation point have been established at the Cuyama Valley Family Resource Center at 4689 Highway 166 in New Cuyama that is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Residents can visit the center to incident information, get relief from the smoke, N95 masks, and water.
San Luis Obispo County Evacuation Information
San Luis Obispo County has also issued evacuation orders and warnings that are shown in the image below with Evacuation Orders shaded in red and Evacuation Warnings shaded in yellow.
For those in need of help finding shelter after being displaced by the evacuations or would like more information about the response, call the American Red Cross at 805-678-3073 or visit the temporary evacuation point at the Santa Margarita Community Hall at 22501 I Street.
Front line of the Gifford Fire response from the air on Aug. 6, 2025. Image courtesy of the Los Padres National Forest
Lopez Lake is under an evacuation order in connection with the Gifford Fire. All visitors must leave the area and public access is closed until further notice. All reservations until Aug. 21, 2025 have been cancelled with refunds granted automatically shared San Luis Obispo County Parks and Recreation.
Direct Relief is managing multiple free mask distribution centers that you can find here.
Smoke from the Gifford Fire rising above the marine layer on Aug. 12, 2025. Shot from the Lopez Hill Camera part of the ALERTCalifornia Camera System.
The Gifford Fire first broke out before 2:00 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 1, 2025, and resulted from a series of spot fires along Highway 166 according to Los Padres National Forest (LPNF) officials, but an official cause remains under investigation.
Highway 166 to State Route 33, between Santa Maria and New Cuyama, was closed due to the fire, but was reopened under one-lane traffic control on Wednesday, Aug. 13 detailed the California Department of Transportation, District 5.
Over 4,900 fire personnel have been assigned to the fire which has destroyed at least five structures and resulted in the evacuation of over 780 homes detailed the Los Padres National Forest.
More information on this fire response will be added to this article and on Your News Channel broadcasts as it becomes available.