Posted on 09/07/2020 6:07:59 AM PDT by a fool in paradise
The El Dorado Fire had burned up the south side Yucaipa Ridge above the communities of Oak Glen and the North Bench area of Yucaipa, fire officials said Sunday. After cresting Yucaipa Ridge, the blaze was threatening the communities of Mountain Home Village and Forest Falls.
No injuries have been reported. An outbuilding was destroyed on Saturday, but no other damage was reported as of Sunday afternoon even though about 30 homes were threatened by the fire.
Evacuation orders have been issued for the communities of Oak Glen, Forest Falls and Mountain Home Village. A portion of North Bench Yucaipa also was evacuated. Red Cross set up a temporary evacuation facility at the Yucaipa Community Center, located at 34-900 Oak Glen Road.
Fire officials reminded those traveling over the holiday weekend of the following road closures:
Highway 38: Northbound Highway 38 is closed at Bryant Avenue and southbound Highway 38 is closed at the town of Angelus Oaks. Oak Glen Road is closed at Pine Bench Rd on the east and Cherry Croft/Jefferson on the west.
Outdoor recreation areas closed, including: Vivian Creek, Momyer, San Bernardino Peak, Falls picnic area and Thurman Flats picnic area. The Mill Creek drainage and off-trail areas of the San Gorgonio Wilderness south of the San Bernardino Peak Divide Trail also were closed.
Officials asked that residents heed evacuation warnings and travelers stay clear of the fire area.
"We need to keep the firefighters we do have focused on firefighting and not on managing people," fire officials said in a joint release Sunday.
Oak Tree Mountain, a year-round recreation area, shut down in March due to the coronavirus pandemic and again on Aug. 1 because of the Apple Fire. It reopened for three hours Saturday before once again closing, this time due to the El Dorado Fire, owner Precious Dykstra said.
Firefighters assured her they had a handle on things, but Dykstra remained worried Sunday as she watched the fire burn nearby. She wasn’t as concerned about her business, though, as much as she was about her community losing its ambiance to the fire.
“It’s here. It’s burning the hill,” she said. “I feel okay, but Oak Glen is not okay.”
Fire crews focused on structure protection, using retardant and water drops to build line around the fire, the Forest Service said.
A line of retardant separates the flames from Dan Mracek’s home at the bottom of a mountainside. He stayed up all night watching the fire and it was “very nerve-wracking,” but he was confident by Sunday morning that his home was safe.
Nonetheless, he evacuated his home in order to stay out of the way of firefighters who remained active nearby. And like Dykstra, he was mostly concerned about the fire’s impact on the community as a whole.
“You’re not going to see that pretty mountain any more,” he said. “It’s sad to see it go.”
The El Dorado Fire is burning just two miles from where the Apple Fire ravaged 33,000 acres last month, and fire officials said it would work to their advantage if the El Dorado Fire entered the burn scar.
The Apple Fire, which had been 95% contained for weeks, was ignited July 31 by a diesel-fueled vehicle "emitting burning carbon from the exhaust system," investigators said.
Area temperatures are expected to surpass 110 degrees near Yucaipa as Southern California is engulfed in a heatwave.
On Saturday, temperatures peaked at 122 degrees in Palm Springs and similar conditions are expected Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.
Hah...Johnny Cash probably would’ve kicked their butt. Lol.
Johnny Cash accidentally started a wildfire that destroyed over 500 acres and killed 49 endangered condors.
...In June 1965, his camper caught fire during a fishing trip with his nephew Damon Fielder in Los Padres National Forest in California, triggering a forest fire that burnt several hundred acres and nearly killed Cash. Cash claimed that the fire was caused by sparks from a defective exhaust system on his camper, but Fielder thinks that Cash started a fire to stay warm and in his drugged condition failed to notice the fire getting out of control.
When the judge asked Cash why he did it, Cash said, “I didn’t do it, my truck did, and it’s dead, so you can’t question it.” The fire destroyed 508 acres (206 ha), burning the foliage off three mountains and driving off forty-nine of the refuge’s 53 endangered condors.
Cash was unrepentant and claimed, “I don’t care about your damn yellow buzzards.” The federal government sued him and was awarded $125,172 ($939,914 in 2016 dollars). Cash eventually settled the case and paid $82,001.He said he was the only person ever sued by the government for starting a forest fire.
Everyone wants to out do each other and now they're getting out of hand:
Gender-Reveal Stunt Sparked 47,000-Acre Wildfire That Did $8M In Damage
You’re right...I was unaware of his causing a fire. I knew he could be a mean SOB, but he could’ve at least shown a little regret at harming the condors.
Thanks for the history tip.
I will say this is just another reason to not have a gender reveal party (as if more reasons were needed.)
I was so glad my daughter an her husband had theirs while visiting the inlaws half the country away. My wife and I watched via some online app (Fakebook live?), which meant I could mute the phone every time I wanted to make a snide comment (which was often.) The only downside was no cake (and I really don't need it.)
It wasn’t until last night that I learned this had to do with the gender of an infant. I figured it was about trans or coming out. But these days, my initial conclusion shouldn’t surprise anybody either. Heh.
Under the COVID standard, gender parties can now be banned as a matter of public safety.
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