Local News

CORRALITOS (CBS 5 / AP / BCN) ― The Summit wildfire that ravaged more than 4,270 acres in the Santa Cruz Mountains was fully contained Tuesday evening, and all residents forced to evacuate were allowed to return to their homes.

Firefighters took advantage of coastal fog and cool temperatures to finally contain the flames six days after they broke out, said Guy Martin, spokesman for CalFire.

Firefighters started Tuesday at 85 percent containment. By 6 p.m., fire officials announced 100 percent containment. 

Crews were hoping for full control of the blaze by the end of this week.

"Estimated control date is (Friday) at 6 p.m.," Martin said.

In spite of the favorable conditions, there were still 2,519 firefighters committed to the fire, which has cost the state approximately $12.2 million to fight, Martin said.

At the height of the blaze there were 3,000 firefighters at the scene. Twelve firefighters have suffered minor injuries—five from poison oak exposure on Tuesday, officials said.

The number of firefighters involved in battling the blaze was expected to shrink further now that the fire has been totally contained.

"They are starting to bring those down," Martin said.

The blaze destroyed at least three dozen homes and 18 outbuildings in the rural area along the border of Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties, about 15 miles south of San Jose.

On Monday, with containment in sight, officials began sending some firefighters home and allowing some of the thousands of evacuees to return to their properties.

The hardest-hit neighborhoods remained closed until Tuesday afternoon, when most roads reopened and all residents with proper identification were allowed back to survey the damage.

Mount Madonna County Park was also reopened in addition to Summit Road, Loma Prieta Avenue and Ormsby Cutoff Road.

"Re-entry into the previously evacuated areas will continue to be restricted to residents only. Law enforcement will continue to require proof of residency as a security measure. Proof of residency may be in the form of a government issued I.D. such as a driver's license, utility bill or other documentation indicating the resident's name and address," according to a statement issued by Cal Fire.

Investigators told CBS 5 that the blaze was likely caused by smoldering brush from a legal burn. Fire officials were also able to pinpoint that the blaze began in an area where Summit Road becomes Loma Prieta Avenue at the Santa Clara-Santa Cruz counties border.

The wildfire broke out just as the state's unofficial fire season got under way in mid-May, erupting following the state's driest two-month period on record.

After a weekend in which air quality levels were dangerously unhealthy at some points in Bay Area locales because of the Summit Fire, the levels on Tuesday largely returned to normal according to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
 
"We are back to normal air quality conditions," district spokeswoman Karen Schkolnick said. "It does appear that we are not currently being affected by the fire."

Also Tuesday, the two-school Loma Prieta Joint Union School District announced they would resume classes on Wednesday after being closed since the Summit Fire began last week.

Loma Prieta Elementary School and C.T. English Middle School were
both ordered closed on Thursday just hours after the fire broke out by fire
officials. The middle school served as an early evacuation site for area
residents displaced by the blaze.

Cal Fire updates on the blaze are available online at: http://cdfdata.fire.ca.gov/incidents/incidents_current.

(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.)