Firefighters are responding to a vegetation fire on the remote oceanside of Santa Rosa Island near Ford Point, in the island’s southeastern corner.
Channel Islands National Park officials said the fire was officially confirmed around 8:30 a.m. with the first report being around 4:30 a.m.
By 3 p.m. Friday, federal wildland resources were en route to begin suppression efforts, the Santa Barbara Independent reports. As of Friday afternoon, there were no injuries, no evacuations, and no structures threatened.
The fire’s cause remains under investigation. However, an unidentified boater reportedly crashed his sailboat in roughly the same area Friday morning.
A local sport fishing captain told the Independent he spotted orange-colored smoke on the island around 9:30 a.m. while heading out with a fishing group about two miles west of Ford Point. He reported seeing a man onshore, the mast of a partially sunken sailboat, and gear floating nearby. After the man fired a flare, the captain contacted the U.S. Coast Guard, and a helicopter airlifted the stranded sailor from the island.
This is a developing emergency response, and details on fire size and containment were not immediately available.
On Friday evening, the U.S. Coast Guard stated, “Today at 9:45 AM, USCG Sector LA-Long Beach responded to a fire on Santa Rosa Island. A 67-year-old man was rescued from shore by Coast Guard Air Station Ventura; no injuries were reported. Thanks National Park Service and local vessels for your support!”
According to the National Park Service, some areas on Santa Rosa Island are temporarily closed to protect sensitive wildlife and habitat. The beaches and dunes of China Camp and Cluster Point, and the area between them, are closed to visitor access; travel is allowed only on marked paths.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
Today at 9:45 AM, @USCG Sector LA-Long Beach responded to a fire on Santa Rosa Island. A 67-year-old man was rescued from shore by Coast Guard Air Station Ventura; no injuries were reported. Thanks @NatlParkService and local vessels for your support! #SearchAndRescue #CoastGuard pic.twitter.com/OtLk3LOerY
— USCG Southwest (@USCGSouthwest) May 16, 2026
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What a mess – too bad SR Island – it is still burning strong in gale force winds from the looks of the visible satellite imagery – https://www.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES/sector_band.php?sat=G18§or=psw&band=GEOCOLOR&length=12&dim=1.
Wrecked sailor shoots up a flare which lands on the island, and starts a fire.
Noozhawk reported that the stranded sailor fired multiple flares to get help, and the flares started the fire. Fire is over 1000 acres, according to the NH report.
It’s just too bad the guy had nowhere to fire those flares so they landed in a place that wouldn’t start a fire…..
Yep, OR haul you a$$ (walk about 5 miles) over to the Ranch @Becher’s, OR hang tight until a boat comes by, or use an EPIRB (the most obvious choice for prepared boaters), OR put out the fire you just set, or….
He panicked and obviously wasn’t fit to manage the situation he got himself into.
Yeah, no chance at all (according to your usual speculations) that he might have had any injuries from being shipwrecked.