MORENO VALLEYÂ – A brush fire that erupted in a canyon north of Moreno Valley, burned 437 acres and destroyed at least one home was 50% contained today.
What was dubbed the Reche Fire was reported about 1 p.m. Friday in the area of Reche Canyon Road and High Country Drive, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
Multiple engine and hand crews from the Riverside County Fire Department, Idyllwild Fire Protection District, Cal Fire-San Bernardino County and other agencies were sent to the location and encountered flames moving at a rapid rate through medium brush.
The area where the blaze started is lightly populated, with both single-family dwellings and mobile homes. However, the fire was pointed in the direction of a larger community bordering the Badlands.
An evacuation order was issued impacting residences south of Reche Canyon, north of Alta Vista Drive, west of Locust Avenue and east of Reche Vista Drive.
The evacuation order was reduced to a warning at around 8:10 p.m. Friday. An evacuation warning was also posted for a neighboring community earlier Friday. Those warnings all remained in place Saturday morning.
At the height of the blaze, at least six Cal Fire air tankers and six water-dropping helicopters made runs on the blaze, successfully slowing its advance, enabling crews to start tightening up gaps.
The cause of the fire was not known.
Copyright 2023, City News Service, Inc.
__________________________________________________________________
Blaze in Canyon North of MoVal Approaches 400 Acres in Size; 5% Contained
MORENO VALLEY (CNS) – A brush fire erupted today in a canyon
north of Moreno Valley burned 385 acres and prompted precautionary evacuations before crews slowed it down.
The non-injury blaze was reported about 1 p.m. in the area of Reche Canyon Road and High Country Drive, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
The agency said multiple engine and hand crews from the county, Idyllwild Fire Protection District, Cal Fire-San Bernardino County and other agencies were sent to the location and encountered flames moving at a rapid rate through medium brush.
Outbuildings in the path of the brusher were reportedly damaged as the flames pushed to the east.
The area where the blaze started is lightly populated, with both
single-family dwellings and mobile homes. However, the brusher was pointed in the direction of a larger community bordering the Badlands.
An evacuation order was issued impacting residences south of Reche Canyon, north of Alta Vista Drive, west of Locust Avenue and east of Reche Vista Drive. An evacuation warning was posted for a neighboring community.
At the height of the blaze, at least six Cal Fire air tankers and six water-dropping helicopters made runs on the blaze, successfully slowing its advance, and enabling crews to start tightening up gaps.
As of 5:30 p.m. Friday, all air tankers had been released, diverting to other wildfires, while only a couple of helicopters remained on the fire lines.
The blaze was declared 5% contained, with the evacuation orders still in place but likely to be lifted overnight.
California Highway Patrol officers were conducting traffic control in the area due to the large amount of public safety equipment, but the fire was not threatening Reche Canyon Road.
The cause of the brusher was not immediately known.
Copyright 2023, City News Service, Inc.
