U.S. Forest Service reports continued progress on Timber Fire, now 17-percent contained.

Firefighting progress continued on the Timber Fire in Big Sur overnight, U.S. Forest Service officials reported in a 7am daily briefing update on Monday, Aug. 17. The fire has burned 5,153 acres and is now 17-percent contained. 

With 2,067 personnel now assigned to the fire, officials said they have had success keeping the blaze south of the Big Sur River and low-intensity as it backs down into the river drainage. "Everything is looking really good up to the [Ventana] Wilderness boundary," Cal Fire Operations Section Chief Marc Bontrager said during an Aug. 17 briefing. On the northern half, firefighters have been preemptively setting fires between the Timber Fire's edge and Highway 1 to minimize fuels, an effort Bontrager said has been successful with just about 200 to 300 acres left to go as of 7am Monday. 

After the morning marine layer lifts, officials expect to restart air operations today. 

The weather forecast calls for drier, hotter weather and a shrinking marine layer, meaning there could be more smoke and fire activity throughout the day today. 

"Below 2,00 feet today, it's going to be cooler and wetter. If you're above it, it's going to be much drier," National Weather Service Meteorologist Matt Mehle told firefighters before beginning their daytime shift on Aug. 17. "So be heads up, keep track of what elevation you are at."

The forecast for those higher elevations above the marine later today is one-third drier than it was on Sunday, for comparison. 

"The saving grace with all of this is we are not seeing strong winds," Mehle said.

Evacuation orders remain in effect in the surrounding community and Highway 1 is closed to the public. All state parks in Big Sur are currently closed and the Los Padres National Forest (both roads and trails) was ordered closed on Aug. 16 "until the Timber Fire is declared out."