Park wildfire is 80% contained
Firefighters on Monday gained ground on a wildfire in the western reaches of Joshua Tree National Park that forced the airlift rescue of a group of hikers, according to the federal Bureau of Land Management.
The blaze, which began Sunday afternoon in the Mojave Desert, consumed 450 acres of Joshua trees, junipers and pines and was 80% contained by Monday evening, said Tracey Kern, a bureau dispatcher in San Bernardino County. Full containment is expected this morning.
On Sunday, a group of 10 to 12 hikers stranded on the Lost Horse Mine Trail were airlifted to safer ground, she said. That area and Keys View Road remain closed to the public.
Kern advised visitors to head to the Barker Dam, Indian Cove and Cottonwood Springs areas.
“The east side shouldn’t be affected as much by the fire,” she said.
In addition to the bureau, crews from the U.S. Forest Service, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the city and county of San Bernardino fought the blaze.
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