The fire was first reported shortly before 4:00pm on Wednesday June 15, 2016 in the Los Padres National Forest in an area that includes private inholdings. In a matter of hours the fire had grown to over . According to the United States Forest Service, the fire was propelled by downslope sundowner winds which sent the fire down canyons in the Santa Ynez Mountains with gusts of over . These contrasted with the typical onshore flow so the fire alternated directions between day and night as it continued to spread. As the fire grew, evacuations were ordered for El Capitán State Beach, Refugio State Beach and residences in El Capitán Canyon. Both a Red Cross evacuation shelter and a livestock evacuation center were established as the fire was burning in an area with a number of large ranches. As the fire ran down the slope, it forced the intermittent closure of the coastal highway designated as U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 along with regional and interstate passenger trains and freight service on the adjacent rail line. The fire grew to overnight and destroyed the water system for El Capitán State Beach.