Brushfire grows to more than 100 acres in Big Sur amid high winds

A brushfire in Big Sur grew to more than 100 acres late Friday night, driven by strong winds as firefighters from around California’s Central Coast were called to respond.

The fire was reported around 7 p.m. and evacuations were underway on the east side of Highway 1 from Palo Colorado Road to Rocky Creek Bridge, said Mike Meddles, a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection duty chief.

Strong winds in the area were pushing the fire west, Meddles said. As of around 10 p.m., firefighters from 13 agencies had responded.

“We’re trying to get more [firefighters] in,” he said.

The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office issued a mandatory evacuation order for all areas west of 3800 Palo Colorado Road to Highway 1, and south to Bixby Creek.

The California Department of Transportation closed Highway 1 in both directions from near the entrance to Andrew Molera State Park in Big Sur to Rio Road in Carmel.

The National Weather Service’s San Francisco office canceled a wind advisory for lower elevations earlier Friday, but warned that strong winds were likely to impact the region’s higher elevations.

Humidity levels were in the teens and winds gusted around 35 mph, forecasters said.

Authorities have named the blaze the Colorado fire, the weather service said.