Los Padres National Forest announces closures related to the Willow Fire

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The Willow Fire continues to cause problems in the Los Padres National Forest as the forest service announces they will have to close multiple areas due to the fire.

Here's a list of the closures that will be in place starting today:

• The boundary of the Willow Fire Closure Area begins at the intersection of the Forest boundary with Tassajara Road then continues south to its intersection with the Pine Ridge Trail.
• The closure then continues west-southwest along the Pine Ridge Trail to its intersection with the Big Sur Trail, then continues south to its intersection with the South Fork Trail.
• The closure then extends south to the intersection with the Marble Peak Trail and continues southwest to the intersection with the Lost Valley Trail.
• It then continues to the intersection with the Escondido Campground Road and west to its intersection with the Arroyo Seco—Indians Road.
• The closure then continues southeast to the intersection with Milpitas Road and to the Forest boundary and continues east along the Ventana Wilderness boundary to the east and continues northwest along the Forest boundary back to its starting point.

You can see the map of the closure in the file attached below:

Forest service law enforcement will be on-hand to enforce the closure. Violators will be cited $5,000 and possibly face jail time of up to 6 months.

This order will expire July 23 unless conditions from the Willow Fire and its aftermath warrant extending the closure order.

The Willow Fire has burned 2,877 acres and is 19% contained as of Thursday morning.