Dozens of ranch properties were put on alert as the 1½-month-old Zaca wildfire raged Monday in Los Padres National Forest backcountry, while to the west a new fire on the central coast shut down part of Highway 1, authorities said.
A fleet of aircraft, including a DC-10 that can swoop in with 12,000 gallons of fire retardant, made sorties over the Zaca Fire. The 215,692-acre blaze, equivalent to 337 square miles, was 77% surrounded, with full containment not expected until Sept. 7.