SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – An out-of-control wildfire in the foothills of a national forest east of Los Angeles threatened ten of thousands of buildings and forced hundreds of residents to flee Sunday amid a days-long heat wave of triple-digit temperatures.
The so-called Line Fire was burning along the edge of the San Bernardino National Forest, about 65 miles (105 kilometers) east of Los Angeles. As of Sunday morning, the blaze had charred about 27 square miles (70 square kilometers) of grass and chaparral, leaving a thick cloud of dark smoke blanketing the area.
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The fire burned so hot Saturday that it created its own thunderstorm-like weather systems of pyroculumus clouds, which could bring more challenging conditions such as gusty winds and lightning strikes, according to the National Weather Service. Firefighters also faced steep terrain, which limited their ability to control the blaze, officials said. The fire remained uncontained Sunday afternoon.
County officials, who declared an emergency Saturday evening, issued evacuation orders for Running Springs, Arrowbear Lake, areas east of Highway 330 and other regions.
Running Springs resident Steven Michael King said he had planned to stay to fight the fire and help his neighbors until Sunday morning, when the fire escalated. He had prepped his house to prevent fire damage but decided to leave out of fear smoke could keep him from finding a way out later.
"It came down to, which is worse, being trapped or being in a shelter?” he said outside an evacuation center Sunday. “When conditions changed, I had to make a quick decision, just a couple of packs and it all fits in a shopping cart.”
Joseph Escobedo said his family has lived in Angelus Oaks for about three years and has never had to evacuate for wildfire. His family, with three young children, was among the remaining few who haven’t left the area as of Sunday afternoon.
“It’s kind of frightening with the possibility of losing your home and losing everything we worked really hard for,” Escobedo said as his family packed up the essentials to leave. ”It’s hard to leave and not be sure if you’re gonna be able to come back.”
Arrowbear Lake resident Michael Lee said he left his home with his dog Saturday afternoon. Lee, a photographer, had turned back to retrieve a camera and didn't get to the evacuation center in Highland until nearly seven hours later.
“I wanna get back to home,” Lee said sitting in his car outside the evacuation center. “The triple-digit weather down here is nasty.”
State firefighters said three firefighters had been injured and more than 35,000 structures were threatened, including single and multi-family homes and commercial buildings. Thunderstorms expected later in the day could make it even more challenging to rein in the fire.
“Afternoon thunderstorms could cause new ignitions and potentially influence activity around the fire perimeter,” state firefighters said in a Sunday morning update. “Hot and dry conditions mixed with thunderstorms are expected to challenge firefighters for the next few days.”
The affected area is near small mountain towns in the San Bernardino National Forest where Southern California residents ski in the winter and mountain bike in the summer. Running Springs is on the route to the popular ski resort town of Big Bear.
Joe Franco, a worker at Noah's Restaurant in the downtown section of San Bernardino, said his friends in the surrounding evacuation zones were gearing up to leave at a moment’s notice. Smoke from the fire had already blanketed downtown San Bernardino, Franco said.
“They’re just kind of hanging on tight and getting their stuff ready to move,” Franco said of his friends. ”Normally they're here, but a lot of people are not coming today."
The fire prompted Redlands Unified School District to cancel Monday classes for roughly 20,000 students.
Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency for San Bernardino County Saturday night.
A small vegetation fire that started Sunday afternoon in Clearlake City, 110 miles (117 kilometers) north of San Francisco, was forcing roughly 4,000 people to evacuate and burning structures. Officials said at least 30 homes and commercial buildings were on fire. Firefighters said they were gaining ground against the blaze Sunday afternoon.
More firefighters were expected to arrive in San Bernadino County Sunday. State officials said vegetation is critically dry in the area and temperatures reached more than 100 degrees (39 degrees Celsius) on Saturday, with relative humidity ideal for the fire to spread. The blaze began Thursday evening, and the cause is under investigation.
More than 600 firefighters were battling the fire, supported by water-dropping helicopters that hovered over homes and hillsides, along with other aircraft, according to state firefighters. Cal Fire officials didn’t return calls on Sunday seeking more information about three injured firefighters.
The fire produced coiling clouds of dense smoke, and flames could be seen cresting hillside ridges.
No homes or other structures had been damaged or destroyed.
The National Weather Service said downtown Los Angeles hit a high of 112 degrees Fahrenheit (44 Celsius) Friday, which marked the third time since 1877 that a temperature that high has been reached there.