CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : NORCO : 850 Acres of Dense Chaparral Charred

Firefighters have doused a brush fire that charred about 850 acres of dense chaparral near Norco over the holiday weekend, a state Forestry Department spokesman said. The wildfire, which broke out Saturday afternoon, was declared out at 6 p.m. Sunday, said Bob Ingram, a forestry official. Fire officials believe the blaze was probably caused by children playing with matches, said Jeff Lloyd, a dispatcher for the Forestry Department and the Riverside County Fire Department. About 225 firefighters from Orange and Riverside counties, the cities of Corona and Norco, the Forestry Department and the state Corrections Department battled the blaze at its height, Lloyd said. No one was injured. The investigation into the fire’s cause was continuing.