Wolf fire explodes amid other blazes in Riverside County, causing hundreds of residents to flee
- Share via
A wildfire in Riverside County erupted Sunday afternoon, rapidly growing to more than 1,100 acres and forcing evacuations and road closures near Banning, according to Cal Fire.
The Wolf fire broke out near the intersection of Old Banning Idyllwild Road and Wolfskill Truck Trail a little after 3 p.m., according to the agency. Roughly 750 people have been ordered or warned to evacuate, according to Tawny Castro, a spokesperson for the state agency’s Riverside County operations. The blaze is 10% contained, though the roughly 300 firefighters on the ground will need to assess the situation after the sun rises.
“We will not have a good idea until the morning,” Castro said, adding that four night-flying helicopters have been deployed. “In the morning we will have fixed-wing aircraft that can drop fire retardant.”
An evacuation center has been set up at Hemet High School, at 41701 Stetson Ave., as well as an animal evacuation center in San Jacinto at 581 S. Grand Ave.
The Wolf fire was one of three that broke out in Riverside County on Sunday, in addition to fires burning across the state, including in neighboring San Bernardino County.
The Lake fire broke out in Silverwood Lake State Recreation Area in San Bernardino County, burning more than 400 acres and prompting evacuations and road closures in the region.
The Mindy wildfire broke out near Aguanga and had burned more than 70 acres, Castro said. It was about 50% contained as of Sunday night, and mandatory evacuation orders had been downgraded to warnings and an evacuation warning lifted.
A vegetation fire was also burning in the city of Riverside and had consumed more than 80 acres by Sunday night, temporarily spurring evacuations, officials said.
The Mandalay fire caused heavy, drifting smoke, which prompted 911 calls from concerned residents, the Riverside Fire Department said on Facebook. The department said five mutual-aid engine companies and Cal Fire joined in the firefight. By about 4:30 p.m., fire officials said forward progress on the fire had been stopped, according to Watch Duty.
Mandatory evacuations were lifted, the department announced around 9:30 p.m. Residents were told they could access their homes with identification at the intersections of Tyler Street and Eureka Drive, Valley Drive and Jones Avenue, and Gaylord Drive and Stover Avenue.
Resident Amy Ashcraft, standing amid a haze of wildfire smoke on Sunday afternoon, said she and others had been observing the fire near their homes, taking pictures.
“All of the sudden, it just got worse,” she told news organization OnScene. Ashcraft then started wetting down the roof of her family’s home until they were ordered to evacuate.
More to Read
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
More From the Los Angeles Times
Podcasts
In this episode, we discuss the history here, what lessons were learned — and not — and how that can inform what we we do this time around as we attempt to rebuild Altadena and the Pacific Palisades.
This week’s episode covers the sentencing and future legal proceedings for “The Ketamine Queen” — the doctor who pled guilty to supplying Matthew Perry with ketamine.
This week, “A Matter of Degrees,” hosted by Dr. Leah Stokes & Dr. Katharine Wilkinson, discuss how insurance companies are failing to accommodate for the impacts of climate change.
