Crews and community take action to keep livestock safe during lake fire | Local News

Saving buildings and fighting fires are normal duties of firefighters, but feeding ostriches is not so common.

However, a Los Angeles-area team that was near two large birds also cared for ostriches during the Lake Fire north of the Santa Ynez Valley.

The ostriches were the big news at the emergency center, Sarah Aguilar, director of Animal Services, told the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors.

“Everyone knew about the ostriches. They’re fine,” she said. “We were able to get to them and make sure they were fed.”

Two weeks after it started, the Lake Fire was 38,664 acres in size and 73% contained, Santa Barbara County Fire Department Capt. Scott Safechuck said Friday, adding that the fire department’s firefighting force had dropped to 2,055 people.

The cause is still under investigation, Safechuck said.

As the fire grew out of control after it started on July 5 and raced toward ranches and homes on vast tracts of land, the Santa Ynez Valley ranching community sprang into action.

“They were awesome,” Aguilar said. “It was really cool to see the teamwork and just people coming together.”

In addition to community members, the county agricultural commissioner’s office and the Santa Barbara County Cattlemen’s Association also helped coordinate “large-volume evacuations of large animals,” such as ranches with 200 head of cattle.

The fire coincided with other events that left a number of areas normally used to house large livestock during previous emergencies filled to capacity.

Through social media, people who were safe from the advancing fire quickly offered trailers to help transport livestock and space to house the livestock for the displaced.

Due to a horse show, the Earl Warren Showgrounds in Santa Barbara was unavailable.

The Santa Barbara County Fair was also so full that the Santa Maria Fairpark was full that no more animals could be housed there either.

The Santa Maria Elks/Unocal Event Center, which also hosted the main fire camp, temporarily housed 16 horses.

To help during the emergency, Santa Barbara County officials launched a mutual aid form for people to contact their neighbors. More than 120 responses came in.

“The number of offers for help was more than three times the number of requests for help,” Aguilar said.

An “Animals in the Lake Fire Zone” form requested information about missing or stray animals in the fire areas, or animals housed there that require care.

They specifically asked about the species and number of animals, names, addresses, and the last date they were seen. They also asked if the animals were friendly or feral, and what their favorite food or treat was.

In addition to assisting with large livestock, the county and the Santa Ynez Valley Humane Society also helped with dogs and cats that needed temporary shelter when their owners were left homeless by the fire.

From his home at the height of the fire danger, David Hunsicker, president of the Santa Ynez Valley Equine Association, remembers seeing the traffic that accompanied the displaced people and animals, including the stream of semi-trailer trucks.

“There were a ton of horses that came out,” Hunsicker said. “They all had a safe place, so that was good.”

At the Santa Ynez Valley Equestrian Association, horses arrived and departed depending on the threats to their homes. All guests in the shelter had left by Wednesday.

“All in all, it went well and I consider us lucky that no animals were lost,” he added.

He estimated that six horses were temporarily housed at the facility. Many more stables were available, but unused, on the 22.5-acre site at 195 N. Roblar Ave.

“There is a community within the horse world that knows where to go with horses,” he said.

Now that the fire is better contained, normalcy has returned. This week, the SYVEA facility hosted seminars for the National Reined Cow Horse Association.