2nd wildfire breaks out at Vandeberg Air Force Base | Air Force Times

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. — Another wildfire, possibly sparked by a downed powerline, broke out Wednesday and forced the evacuation of buildings on a large central California military base where another blaze has been burning all week, officials said.

The new blaze broke out at 2 p.m. on the north side of the coastal, mostly undeveloped Vandenberg Air Force Base is unrelated to the other fire that's on the south side, base officials said.

The blaze, which had grown to at least 20 acres, brought the evacuation of administrative buildings, but was not yet a threat to any of the housing or key facilities on the base.

It is sending a great deal of smoke over Lompoc, a city of 40,000 people at the edge of the base, though the flames themselves are not threatening the city.

A preliminary report says a downed powerline sparked it. All traffic into the base has been stopped.