Where is Gifford Fire burning in Central California? See interactive map
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- The Gifford Fire has burned 83,933 acres, becoming California's largest wildfire of 2025.
- Evacuation orders and road closures span San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties.
- Highway 166 remains closed due to fire damage and active containment operations.
The Gifford Fire has scorched more than 96,000 acres of California’s Central Coast, becoming the state’s largest wildfire of the year so far.
The massive wildfire burning in eastern San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties was 15% contained as of Thursday, Aug. 7, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Exactly where is the blaze burning? Where are evacuations and which roads have been closed?
Here’s where you need to know:
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Where is the Gifford Fire burning in Central California?
The Gifford Fire sparked from multiple blazes northeast of Santa Maria along the Highway 166 corridor on the afternoon of Friday, Aug. 1, according to InciWeb.
Burning along the San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara County line, the sprawling wildfire had blackened a total of 96,106 acres as of Thursday morning, InciWeb reported.
Overnight, winds blowing more than 30 mph pushed the fire west into more populated areas east of Arroyo Grande, including the Lopez Lake area, the Los Padres National Forest Service posted in an update on X.
More than 1,500 structures were threatened and more than 20 zones were under evacuation orders in SLO County, the forest service said.
The fire has grown so large that smoke plumes could be seen from space in recent days.
At least three people had been injured in the Gifford Fire.
The cause of the fire was still under investigation as of Thursday, according to Cal Fire.
Which roads are closed due to wildfire?
Highway 166 was closed from the northern junction of Highway 101 in Santa Maria to Perkins Road in New Cuyama, according to the California Department of Transportation. The highway closure has been in place since Friday evening.
“Motorists are advised to use an alternate route” due to the Gifford Fire, Caltrans said.
As of Thursday afternoon, the following roads were closed, according to the SLO County Office of Emergency Services:
- Hi Mountain Road at Lopez Drive
- Huasna Townsite Road south at Huasna Road
- Husana Road east of Huasna Townsite Road intersection
Additionally, the California Highway Patrol was restricting non-essential traffic on Huasna Road at School Road, the CHP said in a post on X.
Where are evacuations in SLO and Santa Barbara counties?
Evacuation orders were issued for zones in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties, according to Cal Fire.
As of Thursday morning, residents in the following SLO County zones had been told to leave their homes: LPF-011, LPF-013, LPF-014, LPF-015, LPF-016, LPF-017, LPF-018, LPF-019, SLC-225, SLC-239, SLC-240, SLC-261, SLC-262, SLC-263, SLC-264, SLC-297, SLC-298, SLC-311, SLC-334, SLC-335, SLC-336, SLC-337.
In Santa Barbara County, these zones were under evacuation orders Thursday morning: LPF-165, SBC-159-A, SBC-161-A, SBC-163, SBC-167, SBC-169-A, SBC-169-B.
There is an “immediate threat to life,” for residents living in these zones, Cal Fire said.
How close is blaze to Madre Fire location?
As of Wednesday, the Gifford Fire was burning just west of the scar of the Madre Fire.
The Madre Fire scorched more than 80,000 acres of the Carrizo Plain in San Luis Obispo County in July, Cal Fire said, making the blaze California’s second-largest wildfire of 2025.
As of Tuesday, Aug. 5, “There was no movement” on the Gifford Fire’s eastern flank because the blaze reached the scorched sides of the Madre Fire, according to an InciWeb report.
The Madre Fire sparked near Highway 166 on July 2.
The mammoth wildfire burned for 24 days, burning a total of 80,779 acres in eastern San Luis Obispo County before it was fully contained on July 26.
The Madre Fire damaged one structure and destroyed another, Cal Fire said, and two firefighters were injured in the wildfire.
This story was originally published August 7, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Where is Gifford Fire burning in Central California? See interactive map."
