Wildfire season in Southern California got off to an ominous start this weekend, with several fires sparking across Riverside and San Bernardino counties’ parched landscapes, highlighting concerns for much of the Golden State this summer and fall.
On Monday, firefighters continued battling the Wolf fire near Banning, which had forced hundreds to evacuate.
The blaze had grown to 1,400 acres and was 10% contained, according to an update from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. At least two additional areas were ordered to evacuate overnight, officials said, on top of some 750 people who had already been put under evacuation warnings or orders Sunday. An emergency shelter had been set up for evacuees at Hemet High School.
The fire broke out as temperatures spiked in areas of San Bernardino and Riverside counties over the weekend. Though winds weren’t particularly strong or the humidity remarkably low, much of California’s landscape is primed to burn — after a below-average rainy season in Central and Southern California, vegetation is desiccated, setting the stage for an active fire season.
“Just because things have been so dry and we haven’t had that meaningful rainfall that we need, that’s why we’re starting to see fires about to break out,” said Sam Zuber, a National Weather Service meteorologist in San Diego. “Things are just really dry out there.”
Zuber said those triple-digit temperatures in the Southland’s deserts and high 90s for the Inland Empire will begin to fall through Wednesday, which could help ease some of the conditions for firefighters.
But, she said, the landscape will remain bone-dry.
Just this weekend, Cal Fire responded to nine new fires across the state, including multiple fires in Riverside and San Bernardino counties and up north.
The Wolf fire remained, by far, the largest. Cal Fire officials said Monday morning that crews made “good progress” on the fire overnight and expected to continue to push it back with multiple aircraft and hundreds of firefighters on the ground. The fire broke out near the intersection of Old Banning Idyllwild Road and Wolfskill Truck Trail a little after 3 p.m. Sunday, according to the agency.
The Mindy wildfire near Aguanga also started Sunday, and was measured at about 100 acres by Monday morning, with almost 70% containment, according to Cal Fire.
The Mandalay fire in the Jurupa Valley also ignited Sunday, growing to 63 acres with no containment, per the latest Cal Fire reports.
Near Devore, the Cable fire broke out in Cable Canyon on Sunday, but remained at about 15 acres Monday morning, with 15% containment. Cal Fire officials reported that one firefighter there had been taken to the hospital for a heat-related injury.
On Saturday, the Lake fire forced more than 100 people to evacuate Silverwood Lake State Recreation Area. It remained at 478 acres and was 15% contained as of Monday morning, but Cal Fire reported crews had been able to stop its progress.
The Smiley fire near Ordway also broke out Saturday, reaching 83 acres. It was 100% contained by Monday morning, according to Cal Fire.
With so many ongoing fires, officials issued an air quality alert Monday for the Riverside County mountains, Coachella Valley and San Gorgonio Pass including Palm Springs and Idyllwild.
“Particles in wildfire smoke can get deep into the lungs and cause serious health problems such as heart attacks, strokes, asthma attacks, and difficulty breathing,” the weather service warned. “Everyone can be affected, but people with lung or heart disease, older adults, people who are pregnant, children, and those who spend a lot of time outdoors are at greater risk.”
Officials were also concerned that much of inland Northern California — from the eastern Mendocino National Forest to Shasta, Tehama and Trinity counties — could soon see increased wildfire activity. The region was upgraded to a red flag warning for Monday and Tuesday, with the weather service warning that thunderstorms and winds could create dangerous conditions.
“Lightning can create new fire starts and [that] may combine with gusty outflow winds to cause a fire to rapidly grow in size and intensity,” the red flag warning said.
