Santa Barbara County

County in California

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Report created October 27, 2026 at www.firezones.info/county/083/santa-barbara

Summary

  • Fire hazard severity zones

    Share of the land in each CAL FIRE hazard class

    29% Very High

    Most of the Very High land is in the State Responsibility Area, where the State Fire Marshal's zones apply.

  • Fire history

    Share of the land inside a recorded wildfire perimeter

    52% has burned

    Most recently the 2025 Foothill Fire, which burned 45 acres here, one of 481 fires on record.

  • Power line fire risk

    Share of the land in the High Fire-Threat District

    22% Extreme

    Utilities may shut off power in the CPUC High Fire-Threat District in fire weather, and homes outside it can lose power when their lines run through it.

Land by hazard class

  1. Very High 511,524 acres · 502,784 state, 8,740 local 29%
  2. High 219,758 acres · 210,759 state, 8,999 local 12%
  3. Moderate 97,381 acres · 83,608 state, 13,773 local 6%
  4. Non-wildland 108,100 acres · Local Responsibility Area 6%
  5. Not mapped by CAL FIRE 823,377 acres · Mostly federal land 47%

1,760,140 acres of land in all, 797,151 in the State Responsibility Area and 139,611 in the Local. State zones are the ones the State Fire Marshal designated, in effect since 1 April 2024. Local zones are CAL FIRE's 2025 recommendation, which each city or county adopts by ordinance and can make stricter. How to read fire zones

Largest fires

  1. 2007 Zaca Fire Of 240,359 acres in all · Cause: Equipment use 224,072 acres
  2. 1922 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 114,745 acres
  3. 2009 La Brea Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 97,815 acres
  4. 1966 Wellman Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 97,117 acres
  5. 1955 Refugio Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 79,429 acres
  6. 1953 Big Dalton Fire Of 67,702 acres in all · Cause: Miscellaneous 66,937 acres
  7. 1964 Coyote Fire 65,339 acres
  8. 1923 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 61,870 acres
  9. 2025 Gifford Fire Of 131,614 acres in all 47,951 acres
  10. 2017 Thomas Fire Of 281,791 acres in all · Cause: Miscellaneous 47,218 acres

And 471 smaller fires. In all, 919,951 acres of Santa Barbara County have burned. Acres are the land each fire burned here, and fires that crossed less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history

Sources

Fire hazard severity zones
CAL FIRE Office of the State Fire Marshal
State map published 27 June 2025, local map 2 February 2026
Fire history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Power line fire risk
California Public Utilities Commission
Published 23 February 2026

This site is independent and not affiliated with CAL FIRE or the CPUC, so for an official determination, check with the agency or your city or county. How we read the data

Nearby areas

Cities and towns in Santa Barbara County

Neighboring counties

  1. Santa Barbara County 29% Very High · this area
  2. Kern County 12% Very High
  3. San Luis Obispo County 28% Very High
  4. Ventura County 36% Very High