After a day of chasing wind-whipped flames up and down ravines dried out by a rainless spring, firefighters in the Santa Cruz Mountains are counting on a break today.The gales that pushed the Summit Fire across more than 3,000 acres of woods and brush Thursday between Santa Cruz and Gilroy are forecast to die back to a gentle breeze, giving hope that the 500 firefighters on the lines can keep the blaze from consuming any more homes.
"It's the best we could hope for, dying winds and dropping temperatures," George Hoyt, a spokesman with the state Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said Thursday night.
At least 12 houses burned Thursday and hundreds of residents were evacuated after the fire broke out at 5:15 a.m. at Maymens Flat, off Summit Road in Santa Clara County. The area where the fire started is southeast of Highway 17 and northwest of Highway 152 near the Santa Cruz County border. The cause of the blaze remained under investigation.
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