Thomas Fire (2017)
December 4, 2017 – January 12, 2018
Fast Facts
- Date
- December 4, 2017 – January 12, 2018
- Acres burned
- 281,893 — largest CA fire at the time
- Counties
- Ventura, Santa Barbara
- Deaths
- 2 (1 firefighter direct + 1 civilian)
- Mudslide deaths (post-fire)
- 23 at Montecito on January 9, 2018
- Structures destroyed
- 1,063
- Damage
- $2.2 billion (2017 USD)
- Cause
- SCE power line + 2nd ignition
Cause: Southern California Edison power line + 2nd ignition under investigation
Perimeter & Origin Map
Hover or tap markers for detailsPerimeter is a simplified polygon approximating the final burn footprint from NIFC/CalFire records. Origin coordinates from the official incident investigation report.
A Santa Ana firestorm
The Montecito mudslide
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the Montecito mudslide?
On January 9, 2018, one month after the Thomas Fire had burned the watershed above Montecito, an intense rainstorm dropped approximately one inch of rain in 15 minutes on the recently denuded slopes of Romero Canyon and Cold Spring Canyon. The resulting debris flow killed 23 people and destroyed approximately 130 homes in Montecito. The mudslide was a direct hydrological consequence of the Thomas Fire and is commonly counted as part of the fire's total casualties.
How big was the Thomas Fire?
The Thomas Fire burned 281,893 acres across Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties between December 4, 2017 and January 12, 2018. At the time it was the largest single wildfire in California's recorded history (a record subsequently broken multiple times, most recently by the August Complex in 2020).
How did the Thomas Fire start?
The CalFire investigation determined that the Thomas Fire was ignited at approximately 6:24 p.m. PST on December 4, 2017 by a Southern California Edison power line failure in Anlauf Canyon, near Steckel Park in Ventura County. A second ignition occurred approximately one mile away that night; investigators determined both ignitions merged within hours. SCE settled approximately $4 billion in fire damage claims in 2020.