| Canyon Fire (2016) | |
|---|---|
| Part of the2016 California wildfires | |
 Smoke rises from the Canyon Fire withLaunch Complex 3 in the foreground. | |
| Date(s) |
|
| Location | Vandenberg Air Force Base,Santa Barbara County,California |
| Coordinates | 34°36′43″N120°34′05″W / 34.612°N 120.568°W /34.612; -120.568 |
| Statistics[2] | |
| Burned area | 12,742 acres (51.6 km2)[1] |
| Impacts | |
| Deaths | 1 |
| Damage | $12 million |
| Map | |
  Location in Southern California | |
TheCanyon Fire was awildfire that burned onVandenberg Space Force Base inSanta Barbara County,California during September 2016. By the time the fire was contained on September 24, it had burned 12,742 acres (51.6 km2) of land.[1]
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The fire broke out September 17 and quickly grew to over 500 acres (2.0 km2). Due to the location of the fire, burning in a remote canyon on the southern half of the base, access was difficult for fire crews.[3] On September 18 the fire jumped to over 2,200 acres (8.9 km2) prompting evacuation warnings for homes on San Miguelito Canyon south ofLompoc and east of the base.[4] By mid-afternoon on September 19 the fire had grown to over 4,528 acres (18.3 km2) and with no containment was continuing to burn at a "slow to moderate speed".[5]
During the fire, base officials warned fighterfighters aboutunexploded ordnance possibly located on the grounds.[6] By the morning of September 20, the fire had been estimated at 10,542 acres (42.7 km2) in size with only 18% of the fire contained.[7]
On September 21, aVentura CountyOESwater tender assigned to the fire crashed onHighway 246 just outside Lompoc,[8] killing one firefighter and injuring another. The deceased identified as engineer Ryan Osler.[8][9]
The fire was fully contained on September 24 after burning 12,742 acres (51.6 km2).[1][10]
The launch of aUnited Launch AllianceAtlas V carrying theWorldView-4earth observation satellite, originally scheduled for September 18, was delayed as the firecrews fought the Canyon Fire.[11] While all fires at Vandenberg were contained by September 27, facilities and instrumentation needed to be surveyed for damage and, due to the delays, the launch did not occur until November 11, 2016.[10][12][13]
The fire also caused widespread power outages in multiple facilities on the base including at least onefire station which had to operate on generator power.[5]
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