The Lick Fire, as it has been labeled by fire officials, started in the rolling hills east of Morgan Hill at 1:45pm Monday and charred 50 acres behind Findley Ridge within 45 minutes thanks to a stiff wind and ample dry brush within the park, a CalFire dispatcher reported. As of 7am today, the fire was only 10 percent contained, was being fought by almost 1,200 firefighters and was expected to char about 10,000 acres by Tuesday night.

The fire burned a park out-building Monday night and threatens five more park buildings and 10 cabins near Poverty Flat, CalFire public information officer Herman Dekruyff said. Park and fire officials evacuated people in the area and three park rangers and their families. They also closed the park and portions of East Dunne Avenue and Cochrane Road.

If the fire spreads west, it could threaten homes in the Holiday Lakes Estate area, which are perched atop the dry hills, surrounded by trees and other vegetation.

Fighting the fire has been difficult because the park's terrain is steep and curvy, dispatchers said. This makes the blaze more dangerous for firefighters and more difficult to bring vehicles into the area.

"The small (fire engines) aren't doing much," Dekruyff said. "The helicopters aren't really doing much either."

This afternoon, CalFire is bringing in a DC-10 plane that can drop 12,000 gallons of water on the flames in hopes of scorching the fast moving fire, he said.

CalFire has set up a base camp in Gilroy's Christmas Hill Park, from where smoke could be seen billowing up into the blue sky Monday. The dark cloud, carried north by the wind, was visible across the Bay Area.

The last major fire close to Morgan Hill was the 2002 Croy fire, which burned 3,000 acres over seven days, destroying 34 homes and damaging others. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

If you have photos of or information about the fire, please e-mail editor@garlic.com or call 847-7037. Marilyn Dubil contributed reporting to this article.