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The Spanish Ranch Fire occurred on August 15, 1979 in the coastal mountains of central California off Highway 166 in San Luis Obispo county. The fire was initially topography-driven, with low to moderate rates of spread in challenging terrain. During the transition to indirect attack, surfacing downdraft winds acting on an escaped finger of fire yielded extreme fire behavior and rapid rates of spread. Multiple burnovers resulted in the deaths of four firefighters.