Firefighters concerned that Line Fire could soon threaten Big Bear: "We're concerned for the citizens"
The massive Line Fire continues to burn in San Bernardino County after torching tens of thousands of acres of brush over the weekend, forcing thousands to be placed under evacuation order.
The wildfire first sparked along Base Line and Aplin streets in the city of Highland around 6 p.m. on Thursday. It tore through several hundred acres before quickly growing over Friday night to surpass 3,000 acres.
By Saturday, the fire had scorched more than 7,000 acres and San Bernardino County officials issued a proclamation of emergency. Compounding a difficult situation as thousands of people were ordered to evacuate, a small earthquake rattled the area, according to the United States Geological Survey.
Paired with the sweltering heat, weather officials say that the smoke from the fire has created clouds similar to those that come with thunderstorms, prompting reports of over 1,100 lightning strikes in the area. The small, fire-created storm system increased winds in the immediate area, fanning the flames as they continue to spread and creating challenges for firefighters. Cal Fire said Sunday that "thunderstorm outflow winds" were causing "very erratic behavior."
As of Monday morning, the blaze had swelled to engulf 25,813 acres and was 5% contained, according to firefighters.
Concern for significant growth
Late Monday, county officials noted their concern that the fire could begin to spread towards Big Bear Valley, putting thousands more people in danger in coming days.
Cal Fire officials say they are expecting the blaze to grow significantly over the next two days, prompting them to issue an evacuation warning for the valley.
"These thunderstorms have been moving this fire around today," said San Bernardino County Fire Chief Dan Munsey. "The fire is moving northeast and we're concerned for the citizens of Big Bear."
Hand crews have been sent into the area to protect the homes, and officials say that residents should prepare in case their evacuation warnings turn into orders. Residents were reassured that their homes would be protected from things other than the fire if they did have to leave.
"If anybody comes out to loot in this county they will be arrested and they will be prosecuted," san San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus. "We're gonna be out there in force making sure that happens, including undercover units."
Government assistance activated
Since the wildfire more than tripled in size over the weekend, Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency on Saturday night that allowed for additional resources and funding to assist with the firefight.
By early Monday, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department had issued evacuation orders for the entire communities of Running Springs, Arrowbear Lake, Forest Falls and Mountain Home Village, areas with a total population of more than 6,000 people. Thousands more in the mountain communities of Green Valley Lake, Cedar Glen, Lake Arrowhead, Crestline, Valley of Enchantment, Angelus Oaks and Seven Oaks were issued evacuation warnings, with officials telling residents who require additional time to evacuate — including those with pets and livestock — to leave their homes immediately.
Gov. Gavin Newsom activated the California National Guard on Monday to join nearly 2,000 firefighters battling the Line Fire.
The order authorized the guard to deploy 80 soldiers as hand crews, four UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, and two C-130 cargo planes to drop water and fire retardants. Cal Guard will also send a military police company to help local law enforcement in evacuated areas.
"As the Line Fire continues to pose a threat to San Bernardino communities, we're pouring resources into this incident aggressively by deploying more air and ground support through the California National Guard," Newsom wrote.
As the military gathered the infusion of resources, the wildfire burned 23,601 acres and forced thousands of people to leave their homes in San Bernardino County amid a record-setting heat wave late last week.
Hundreds of firefighters brought the blaze's containment to 3% overnight. Still, stifling heat and dry conditions remain a complicating factor as work is done around the clock to protect residents and structures.
"We know that triple-digit temperatures are coming again today, so that's why it's so important to get that work done at night when it is cooler," Cal Fire Battalion Chief Brent Pascua said. "We had the water-dropping helicopters back last night, so hopefully we'll see that containment come up."
"The heat affects them tremendously. You know, the work-rest cycles? They can work for a little bit but the body just needs to take a break after awhile," Pascua said of the firefighters working in extreme heat.
Later Monday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency approved assistance for emergency resources spend on the Line Fire, as well as two other large fires burning in Nevada and Oregon. Their aid aims to "help states mitigate, manage and control active wildfires."
"We're just kind of on the edge, just waiting"
On Friday, the skies above San Bernardino County lit up in a glowing orange hue as bright red flames could be seen tearing through shrubbery. Some in Highland said they could see the rapidly growing fire from their homes.
"The flames were right up on us because the wind shifted," said Brian Gano, who was trying to hose down the flames alongside his wife and son. "I got a high-pressure line in my backyard."
People living in the area waited to hear whether they would have to evacuate. Resident Diya Hirpara was buying groceries as she tried to prepare.
"It was pretty scary," Hirpara said. "We're just kind of on the edge, just waiting."
Firefighters flew through thick, billowing plumes of smoke to make fire retardant drops, working against the blaze from the air and ground.
They managed to contain the flames within the San Bernardino National Forest, but winds started to sweep the fire toward homes.
"We had an aggressive firefight on our hands to protect those homes," Pascua said.
The Los Angeles Fire Department dispatched a team of more than 20 firefighters and three engines to assist the crews battling the blaze.
Evacuation orders and warnings
Cal Fire says there are currently 35,405 structures threatened, including single and multi-family homes, commercial buildings and other minor structures.
In addition to evacuating the towns of Runnings Springs and Arrowbear Lake, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department has issued evacuation orders 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 area east of Orchard Road to Cloverhill from Highland Avenue north to the foothills; and north of Highland Avenue and East of Palm Avenue to Highway 330.
Later Sunday, additional evacuation orders were issued for those living on Garnett Street east to the 138 and Mill Creek north to the foothills, according to SBSD. At around 6:45 p.m., deputies said that people living in Forrest Falls and Mountain Home Village were also placed under a mandatory evacuation order.
Evacuation warnings have been issued for neighborhoods from Boulder Avenue east to Church Street and Greenspot Road north to the foothills; east of Church Street and north of Highland Avenue; east of Weaver and north of Greenspot to the Iron Bridge; Green Valley Lake; Cedar Glen; Lake Arrowhead; Crestline, Valley of Enchantment, Angelus Oaks, Seven Oaks, and Mountain Home Village.
On Monday, evacuation warnings were extended to include thousands of residents living in Big Bear Valley.
Information on all orders an warnings is available on Cal Fire's website.
Evacuation shelters have been established in Victorville at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds, Building 6, 14800 7th Street; and in Highland at Immanuel Baptist Church, 28355 Base Line Street. However, those sheltering in place at Immanuel Baptist Church were expected to be moved to the Jesse Turner Community Center, a newly established evacuation center.
An animal evacuation shelter has been established in San Bernardino at Devore Animal Shelter, 19777 Shelter Way. For questions, residents may call (909) 386-9820 or (800) 472-5609.
The American Red Cross is also assisting those who have been displaced, offering shelter, water and other resources.
Air quality concerns
On Friday, air quality regulators issued a smoke advisory to warn people about harmful conditions as smoke from the Line Fire was carried by winds into surrounding areas. The air quality is considered "unhealthy for sensitive groups" to "very unhealthy," a category that indicates everyone — including people without any health conditions — may experience harmful side effects.
According to the South Coast Air Quality Management District, winds were blowing smoke from the wildfire west toward the cities of Highland and San Bernardino, with people in those areas expected to feel the impacts on Friday and Saturday.
A map showing the latest smoke and air quality conditions can be found here.
Roads and schools closed
Officials said Highway 18, Highway 38, and Highway 330 are experiencing several closures. Highway 18 is also closed from Kuffle Canyon to Big Bear Dam. Highway 330 is closed in both directions from Garnet Street at State Route 38 in Mentone.
At 7 p.m. on Sunday, CHP officers shut down the eastbound lanes of SR-38 at Bryant Street and made an additional closure at Angelus Oaks.
On Sunday afternoon, administrators with the Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District announced that all of their campuses would be closed on Monday after consulting with city officials and Cal Fire. Additionally, Rim of the World Unified School District announced that they will have a "non-student day" on Monday because of the fire.
Redlands University opted to move to remote learning to start the week because of the air quality advisory currently impacting the campus due to heavy smoke in the area.
In San Bernardino, two community colleges announced that they would not have class on Monday, including Crafton Hills College and San Bernardino Valley College.
