Sep. 8—The out-of-control Line fire in the San Bernardino Mountains grew to 20,553 acres on Sunday evening, up from 17,459 acres on Sunday morning and from 3,833 acres on Saturday morning, with zero containment. Evacuations and evacuation warnings soared along with the number of people threatened by the blaze.
According to San Bernardino County spokesperson David Wert, by 4:24 p.m., an estimated 23,200 people were under evacuation orders. Another 94,000 were under evacuation warnings.
Cal Fire late Sunday estimated the total number of homes and structures at risk at 36,328.
Map: This is where the Line fire is burning near Highland
“There are massive amounts of fuel in areas that are around and threatened by the fire,” Cal Fire spokesman Rick Carhart said Sunday afternoon. “The terrain is a real problem in some of the those areas. Some of those areas, it’s almost impossible to do a whole lot of preparation work because you couldn’t stand there if you wanted to, much less get in there.”
With steep, “treacherous” terrain with no access, “this fire definitely has the potential to continue to grow,” he said.
Carhart said he was unaware of any property damage tied to the fire. There were three firefighter injuries, but details were not available.
The fire that started Thursday largely burned in grass up to 2 1/2 feet tall and chaparral up to 6 feet. It generated massive volumes of smoke.
The fire was so intense on Saturday that it created its own storm clouds. The National Weather Service recorded thousands of lightning strikes, including over 280 ground strikes.
Thunderstorms and lightning strikes had created “havoc” for firefighters, according to Carhart.
“They’ll get wind shifts that just happen in a matter of moments,” he said.
Evacuation orders were issued Sunday afternoon and evening for Forest Falls, Mountain Home Village; and for the areas in Mentone and Yucaipa of Garnet Street east to Highway 38 and Mill Creek north to the foothills.
Earlier evacuation orders were issued for:
* The area from Calle Del Rio to Highway 38, including Greenspot Road North
* All underdeveloped land east of Highway 330 to Summertrail Place and north of Highland Avenue
* The areas of Running Spring east of Highway 330 and south of Highway 18
* The communities of Running Springs and Arrow Bear Lake
* The area east of Orchard Road to Cloverhill from Highland Avenue north to the foothills
* North of Highland Avenue and East of Palm Avenue to Highway 330
As of 9:45 a.m. on Sunday, additional evacuation warnings were announced for Angelus Oaks and Seven Oaks.
Earlier evacuation warnings were issued for:
* From Boulder Avenue east to Church Street and Greenspot Road north to the foothills
* Church Street east to the city limit and from the foothills south to Greenspot Road
* Green Valley Lake north of Highway 18
* The communities of Cedar Glen, Lake Arrowhead, Crestline and Valley of Enchantment
* Silverwood Lake State Recreation Area
Click here for an updated list of evacuations and evacuation warnings.
The fire prompted the closure of Highway 330 between Highland and Running Springs on Saturday evening. The fire jumped to the west side of the 330 about 5 miles above the Highland and San Bernardino area.
On Sunday, Cal Fire listed the following road closures:
* Highway 18 was closed from Kuffel Canyon to the Big Bear Dam. If you are in Running Springs, you are able to get out but you will not be allowed back in.
* Highway 330 remained closed from Highland to Highway 18 in Running Springs.
* Highway 18 was closed going northbound (inbound) from Kuffel Canyon to Running Springs. Only southbound (outbound) traffic is allowed.
* Highway 18 was closed from Running Springs to Highway 38 (Big Bear Dam).
* Garnet Street was closed at Highway 38 in Mentone.
* Highway 38 Eastbound was closed at Bryant Street. An additional closure will be set up at Angelus Oaks. Residents of Mountain Home Village and Forest Falls will be evacuated down bound on Highway 38 towards Mentone. Residents of Angelus Oaks were to be evacuated up bound towards Big Bear.
Sunday morning, the air was clear at Noble Creek Park in Beaumont, upwind of the Line Fire. The park was closed to the general public, having been converted to the base camp for firefighters battling the four-day-old Line Fire. The towering plume of smoke to the west darkened as the day went on.
Firefighters and first responders dug in for a long siege. Staff set up meal facilities and arranged for hotel accommodations for fellow fire firefighters, some of whom had come from as far away as Merced to battle the blaze.
West of the fire, at a temporary evacuation site in Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland, everything was sepia-toned on Sunday, sunlight filtering through a thick haze of wood smoke.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a smoke advisory. Inland Empire residents, along with parts of Los Angeles and Orange counties, were warned to stay inside if at all possible.
As as result, some school districts canceled classes on Monday.
Between 65 and 70 people evacuated from the Line Fire slept at Immanuel Baptist on Saturday night, according to Ricardo Tomboc, the Red Cross shelter supervisor. The shelter was feeding 35 to 40 more people, he said.
He slept the night at Immanuel Baptist. Technically.
“Well, it depends on how you define sleep,” he said. He got “about three hours.”
King said he normally doesn’t evacuate. But times are changing.
“We can get 300-foot flame lengths, just like that,” he said, snapping his fingers. “One minute the fire is a couple miles away, next thing you know — boom — it’s on ya.”
The evacuation center was later moved from Highland to the Jessie Turner Health and Fitness Community Center at 15556 Summit Ave. in Fontana. Another evacuation shelter was set up in Victorville, at 14800 7th Street, Building 6.
Other evacuees couldn’t put their feelings into words.
A forlorn beagle stared out from beneath a Red Cross blanket draped over his crate, unmoving and unresponsive.
Three other pets — two dogs and a cat — sat silently in their cages beside their owner, who said she’d start crying if she talked about what they’d been through.
San Bernardino County’s Devore Animal Shelter was accepting animals from evacuation areas. According to Wert, by late afternoon Sunday, more than 16 dogs, 15 cats, six chickens, three guinea pigs and a parakeet had been taken to the shelter.
“I’m exceptionally proud of all of our team that is standing up our efforts to support our residents, both in Highland as well as our mountain communities,” said Dawn Rowe, San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors chairperson, whose First District includes most of the area affected by the Line Fire. “Everyone, please heed those (evacuation) warnings and stay safe.”
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
Line fire near Highland more than doubles in size Saturday evening to 17,237 acres; evacuations in place
More on the Line Fire
* Wildfire burning near Highland spreads to San Bernardino National Forest
* Line fire near Highland more than doubles in size Saturday evening to 17,237 acres; evacuations in place
* Map: This is where the Line fire is burning near Highland
* Line fire causes some school districts to cancel Monday, Sept. 9 classes
Originally Published: September 8, 2024 at 10:20 a.m.
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