Fire crews in California moved to protect the ranch owned by Ronald Reagan that he and his wife, Nancy Reagan, used as a vacation home while in the White House, from the Alisal Fire burning in Santa Barbara County, Deadline reports.
Rancho del Cielo, a 688-acre ranch that was called the Western White House during his time in office, sits above Refugio Canyon where the fire was burning as of Wednesday afternoon.
“The fire was several miles from the ranch, which has good defensible space, and several USFS engines were arriving to provide structure protection,” Santa Barbara County Fire public information officer Mike Eliason said in a statement on Twitter.
The property, which the Reagans bought in 1974, is currently owned by the Young America’s Foundation, a conservative group.
“YAF leadership is working with Congressional allies and other leaders who are there offering support in acquiring resources to help fight this fire,” the foundation said in a statement, which notes that multiple fire engines were present on the property spraying fire retardant near the structures.
The group’s president, former Wisconsin governor Scott Walker, said in a statement that the foundation has “taken the necessary steps, as much as a property owner can do, to shield Rancho del Cielo from this very threat. I have confidence our team and the emergency crews will do everything they can to protect Rancho del Cielo and the surrounding area.”
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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