1,200 called to fight fire near Santa Cruz

About 85 residents were ordered to evacuate as the blaze, east of Highway 17 and west of Gilroy, showed that this year's fire season isn't yet over despite recent showers that were so heavy they caused mudslides in the same area now burning.

By Sunday night, the fight against the Loma Fire had gone well. Fire officials said the blaze was 20 percent contained after it consumed 600 acres and destroyed a trailer and two outbuildings. About 160 structures remain threatened.

Firefighters are hoping to further douse the fire and use aircraft and bulldozers to surround much of it by this afternoon, when winds are expected to pick up.

The fire started about 3 a.m. Sunday near Maymers Flat Road, in the area charred by the Summit Fire last year. It began near the top of a ridge and swept downhill into a canyon, spreading quickly.