Fire at Santa Ynez Heli Base

A structure housing the Forest Service’s Santa Ynez helicopter base caught fire early Thursday morning. Multiple engines responded at 1:24 a.m. on March 3, tweeted Captain Daniel Bertucelli, press officer for the County Fire Department. The county’s Fire Station 32 is just outside the Santa Ynez Airport fences and next door to the Forest Service building.

The warehouse-like structure held offices and equipment, such as the chief’s vehicle and chainsaws, which were lost in the fire, said Andrew Madsen, spokesperson for Los Padres. Engine 47 was out being repaired, and helicopters are stored outdoors on the flight line.

At the airport, one observer said the offices hadn’t burned and that the majority of the smoke was in one corner of a vehicle bay.

No one was injured in the fire, which is under investigation. 

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