Marble Cone Fire

The Marble Cone Fire was a wildland fire that was caused by two lightning strikes. It burned for three weeks in August 1977 in the Santa Lucia Mountains high country, at the Big Sur area of Monterey County, California. About 5,700 firefighters cut 160 mi of line around the fire before it was contained. The fire burned 177866 acre in the Santa Lucia Mountains, including the Ventana Wilderness, making it the largest wildfire in recorded California history at that time. As of 2024, it remains the 20th largest wildfire in the state's recorded history.

The fire burned 90% of the vegetation cover in the upper Big Sur River watershed. This posed a threat of serious flooding in the Big Sur River Valley, where a much smaller August 1972 fire had led to severe flooding later that year. This time, however, the rains were moderate and resulted in no major flooding problems. The fire cost $10.65 million to contain and caused millions of dollars more in damage to the watersheds of the Carmel River Valley, Arroyo Seco River, Big Sur, Little Sur River and Big Creek.

Criticism
Big Sur residents and members of the Big Sur Fire Brigade were severely critical of the fire management efforts of Los Padres National Forest supervisor Al West. The local volunteer fire brigade acted quickly as soon as the fire was discovered. The well-trained and equipped department responded with 16 volunteers, a bulldozer, two fire engines, and two pickups carrying pumps and water. They were the first units on scene at about 6pm on the Coast Ridge Road, but West refused to allow them to attack the fire.

The Big Sur Fire Brigade claimed that hundreds of firefighters and dozens of engines, tankers and bulldozers were brought in from surrounding states, but much of the equipment and personnel were parked along Highway 1, unused for almost two weeks. West refused to allow bulldozers on the fire lines for 10 days, despite the fact that they are permitted in wilderness areas during emergencies.

When fire boss Myron Lee acted, he deployed firefighters in a wide encirclement, concentrating on the northern side, choosing to focus on protecting the Carmel River watershed while allowing 80,000 to 85,000 acres of the 98,000-acre Ventana Wilderness to burn. On the southern perimeter, he established firelines far from the fire and ordered backfires that consumed as much land as the fire itself. Fire lines in the south were thinly manned and far from the actual fire, allowing the fire free rein in a large section of the wilderness.

Big Sur Fire Brigade members later learned that USFS policy at the time was to replace used or damaged equipment and replenish firefighting budgets only when the costs exceeded $10 million. Gary Koeppel, foreman of the Fire Brigade, wrote, "Many people at the time suspected that the Marble-Cone fire was allowed to burn until its cost reached that magic million-dollar number."