It has topped ridges in the San Bernardino Mountains and is closing in on high desert communities on the other side. The fire blazed through dry chaparral, a common ground cover that can act as a catalyst for wildfires.
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San Bernardino National Forest officials estimated Tuesday it has exploded to 1,000 acres in about 90 minutes. “We’re seeing extreme fire conditions”. Here’s what the blaze looks like to the local residents affected by it. Video showed towering flames roaring along the freeway, and burning through neighborhoods as the sun began to set. “We sat there with flames all around us”, she said.
The fire erupted Tuesday and quickly grew to 1,500 acres. The blaze, called the Blue Cut fire, was uncontrolled as of Tuesday night, fire officials said.
“It’s raining ash”, Anderson told The Associated Press.
“I can confirm that we’ve lost structures, both residential and commercial”, Sherwin said at the scene of a hard-hit cluster of ranches.
The fire forced a shutdown of part of Interstate 15, leaving commuters and travelers stranded for hours.
John Hockaday, who has penned books about the Cajon Pass and Route 66, wrapped his head in wet rags and held a hose with water from an emptying tank as the fire swept over his property, burned several cars and his mother-in-law’s home, his cousin Ron Snow said.
“I didn’t even want to make an attempt, because the last time there was a fire on the 15, cars burned…and I didn’t get home until 3 in the morning”, said Ms. Tripp, 54, safety coordinator for a trucking company.
The roadhouse was linked to many legends, including one about Elvis Presley. Additional 750 firefighters were also ordered to assist, according to the San Bernardino National Forest officials.
Due to this area being that of mountainous brush, the fire does not seem to be dying down.
Six firefighters from the county found themselves trapped in walls of flames as they tried to put out the blaze affecting homes in Swarthout Canyon. Two of them received minor injuries and were taken to the hospital. The fire department said the injured firefighters were heading back to the fire line to defend structures.
Before the latest Blue Cut Fire broke out Tuesday, 8,000 California firefighters had already been battling eight large wildfires across the state.
It prompted Gov. Jerry Brown to declare a state of emergency in the area within hours of it breaking out, a move that more often comes after a blaze has done several days of destruction.
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More than 600 miles (970 km) to the northwest, crews made headway against a Northern California wildfire that has destroyed more than 175 homes and businesses.
