Firefighters quickly contained a vegetation fire in the Paso Robles riverbed Thursday night, according to fire officials.
The fire was called in at 10:37 p.m. When crews arrived on scene via access in the 3200 block of Sulphur Springs Road, they found approximately 1 acre of thick grass and brush burning with a slow rate of spread.
A total of 18 firefighters battled the fire from Paso Robles Fire, CAL FIRE SLO and Templeton Fire Department.
The fire was contained by 11:02 p.m. Crews remained on scene for several hours for mop up. The cause is under investigation.
On Friday, Battalion Chief Brian Lewis said there have been 53 fires in the Salinas Riverbed in Paso Robles in 2019. The number is closer to 70 when you include fires close to or nearby the riverbed. There have been a number of other vegetation fires in Paso Robles this year.
In July, Paso Robles city leaders declared a public safety emergency and allocate more than $300,000 to work on reducing the risk of fires in the Salinas riverbed.
Chief Lewis says those mitigation efforts will begin on Wednesday, August 7.
