Late last night, the winds shifted and the smoke from the Jesusita fire started blowing West towards us. It turned the moon an ominous red and the air smelled of fire. Overnight we got sprinkled with a light layer of ash. While the fire is still many miles from us, those winds drove it further west, greatly expanding the open front above the many houses on the Northern side of Eastern Goleta and Western Santa Barbara. The fire jumped over 154, the snaky highway over the mountains which leads to wine country.
Today, the winds are back to blowing straight South and maybe even a little East. Westmont College, which is in Montecito by the Eastern edge of the fire, was given a noon deadline to evacuate all students and staff. This weekend is Westmont graduation, they have had to shift their ceremonies off campus to Santa Barbara City College. For the students who are graduating, this is their second major fire as last year they "sheltered in place" in the fire proof gym as the Tea Fire destroyed parts of their campus.
There's a satellite heat map which shows where fires have been spotted, you can see how the fire exploded westward last night across the slopes.
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