Thomas Fire

Wildfire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, December 2017

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/7771/thomas-fire-2017

Key facts

Started December 4, 2017
Contained January 12, 2018, after 39 days
Burned 281,791 acres
Largest fire of 2017 and 11th largest in California's records
Cause Miscellaneous
Buildings 1,091 destroyed, 255 damaged
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. Ventura County 234,501 acres
  2. Santa Barbara County 47,218 acres

Communities

  1. Ventura 1,546 acres
  2. Toro Canyon 1,359 acres
  3. Montecito 609 acres
  4. Mira Monte 263 acres
  5. Ojai 195 acres
  6. Santa Paula 171 acres
  7. North Ventura Avenue 109 acres
  8. Meiners Oaks 59 acres
  9. Santa Barbara 30 acres
  10. Oak View 29 acres

Acres are the land the fire burned in each county and community, and places where it burned less than an acre are not listed. Communities are cities, towns and the unincorporated places the Census Bureau names, so land outside any of them is counted only in its county.

Buildings damaged

  1. Destroyed Over 50% damaged 1,091
  2. Major damage 25 to 50% damaged 39
  3. Minor damage 10 to 25% damaged 70
  4. Affected Up to 10% damaged 146

Buildings CAL FIRE inspected after the fire, by how badly each was damaged. Inspectors record homes, businesses and outbuildings within 100 meters of the fire, and cannot always reach every one, so the counts can differ slightly from other reports.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1898 Los Padres Fire 20,540 acres in total 19,581 acres shared
  2. 1910 Coyote Creek Fire 11,227 acres in total 10,232 acres shared
  3. 1917 Unnamed fire 19,397 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 13,266 acres shared
  4. 1917 Thatcher Fire 29,639 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 25,222 acres shared
  5. 1925 Unnamed fire 8,624 acres in total 7,323 acres shared
  6. 1925 Unnamed fire 12,119 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 6,301 acres shared
  7. 1929 Sulphur Mountain Fire 26,514 acres in total 26,206 acres shared
  8. 1932 Matilija Fire 219,999 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 111,456 acres shared
  9. 1948 Wheeler Springs Fire 22,499 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 21,762 acres shared
  10. 1964 Coyote Fire 65,339 acres in total 17,794 acres shared
  11. 1967 Timber Canyon Fire 10,842 acres in total 10,720 acres shared
  12. 1971 Romero Fire 15,650 acres in total · Cause: Arson 13,680 acres shared
  13. 1972 Bear Fire 17,326 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 7,313 acres shared
  14. 1979 Creek Road Fire 32,706 acres in total 31,983 acres shared
  15. 1983 Matilija Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 4,706 acres shared
  16. 1985 Wheeler #2 Fire 122,687 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 112,111 acres shared
  17. 1985 Ferndale Fire Cause: Arson 46,357 acres shared
  18. 1990 Los Padres Fire 20,540 acres in total 19,581 acres shared
  19. 1993 Steckel Fire 26,838 acres shared
  20. 1996 Grand Fire 10,950 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 9,225 acres shared

And 161 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Thomas Fire, and fires that shared 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 history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Building damage
CAL FIRE Damage Inspection
Updated 19 October 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