Firefighters are battling an eruption of wildfires in the western United States this weekend, with flames ravaging thousands of acres and triggering evacuation orders across California, Oregon and Nevada.
The blaze in San Bernardino County, which ignited late last week, quadrupled in size as the weekend began, scorching thousands of acres on Saturday alone. The flames raced up steep terrain, chewing through thick vegetation as they approached Running Springs, a mountain community of about 5,000 people that lies between the populated resort areas of Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear Lake. The community has been ordered to evacuate, while Lake Arrowhead and areas to its west are under an evacuation warning. By Sunday evening, Cal Fire estimated that the blaze threatened more than 36,000 structures, including family homes and businesses.
Evacuation orders are also in effect on the south side of the fire, while structures could be affected in the city of Highland, which lies at the base of the mountains in San Bernardino County. Three firefighters had been injured battling the blaze as of Sunday afternoon, according to a Cal Fire incident update. “Hot and dry conditions mixed with thunderstorms are expected to challenge firefighters for the next few days,” the update stated.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) proclaimed a state of emergency in the county to secure federal assistance to respond to the fire, which is threatening homes as well as critical infrastructure.
The fire has “room to grow now in essentially three directions and there are population centers and pretty dense, dry vegetation in between those population centers,” UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said in a Saturday briefing.
The fire initially sparked Thursday and had burned about 3,800 acres by Saturday morning, before ballooning thousands of acres through the afternoon. The blaze was so intense that it also formed a towering pyrocumulonimbus cloud — a fire-generated thunderstorm — that was sending out its own lightning, erratic winds and brief rain.
The Line Fire is spreading amid a scorching heat wave in Southern California that has rivaled one seen in September 2020, with temperatures approaching or tying all-time records, exceeding 105 and even 110 degrees in many locations.
Vegetation in the area is “critically dry,” according to the San Bernardino National Forest.
“The San Bernardino front country … has everything you need for a fire to get big,” retired Cal Fire assistant chief Tim Chavez said in an interview posted online by the Lookout, a wildfire reporting website.
Along with this week’s heat, Chavez said, that includes heavy fuels that in most places haven’t burned since the 1990s — and “steep, steep terrain leading up to the mountain communities.”
“Fuels that are stressed like that — they tend to surprise you,” he said.
Temperatures at the base of the fire have been running about 105-110 degrees each day this weekend, Alex Tardy, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in San Diego, said in an email.
He compared the blaze to the El Dorado Fire, which sparked during the September 2020 heat wave, burning almost 23,000 acres in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
“These fires are occurring in light winds, but this one is a little more complicated because it had thunderstorms over it yesterday and likely today as well,” he said.
Stormy skies cloud parts of the region, as monsoon thunderstorms in the area Saturday also helped to intensify the fire.
“Unfortunately, the weather conditions over the next few days are not going to be favorable,” Swain said in the Saturday briefing. “It’s going to be very hot and relatively unstable over the next few days with some increasing winds next week.
Cooler weather is expected to move in by midweek, but that transition could come with strong winds.
Boyles Fire
California firefighters are also battling to contain blazes around Los Angeles County, San Diego County and the city of Clearlake, which is about 100 miles northwest of Sacramento.
The Boyles Fire in Clearlake, in Lake County, has burned through about 76 acres and was about 10 percent contained as of Sunday evening. Authorities issued evacuation orders for two parts of the town, displacing at least 4,000 of its approximately 17,000 residents.
According to Cal Fire, which posted a Sunday night update from the Lake County Fire Protection District, the blaze has “impacted” about 30 structures, although it is too soon to assess the damage. It has also destroyed more than 40 vehicles, the agency said.
Bridge and Roblar Fires
The Bridge Fire has ravaged at least 800 acres around the Angeles National Forest northeast of Los Angeles and Pasadena. In San Diego County, the Roblar Fire northeast of Camp Pendleton burned through at least 950 acres and remained only 20 percent contained as of Sunday night.
Fires in Nevada and Oregon
Wildfires also raged Sunday in other parts of the western United States, including Nevada and Oregon.
In Oregon, multiple blazes in Deschutes County and northern Lake County have torn through thousands of acres of land and prompted evacuation notices. The Firestone Fire, southeast of Paulina Lake and within roughly an hour’s drive of the city of Bend, burned through at least 6,500 acres as of early Sunday evening. Meanwhile, the Flat Top Fire in the Deschutes National Forest has burned through at least 13,600 acres.
In Nevada, strong, dry winds helped propel the Davis Fire south of Reno to roughly 6,500 acres, sparking a state of emergency declaration. Roughly 20,000 people have been evacuated ahead of the flames, according to the declaration from Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo (R).
The fire destroyed at least 12 structures and continued to spread quickly Sunday, forcing new evacuations.
The Western fire season has roared back to life this past week as hot, dry conditions have returned. There are at least 70 large fires burning out West, including 21 in Oregon, 19 in Idaho and 13 in Montana. A mix of wind and dry thunderstorms forecast for the coming days could exacerbate the situation and further strain firefighting resources.
Excessive heat in California is fueling the fires
The heat that has helped fuel the fires has been extraordinary, especially in Southern California.
Downtown Los Angeles has observed its hottest weather of the year with highs near and above the century mark on four straight days. On Friday, it soared to a calendar-day record of 112, which tied for its all-time second-hottest day. On Sunday, it reached 104, another calendar-day record and one of many in the region.
Other notable high temperatures include:
- Palm Springs: 121 degrees Friday.
- Death Valley: 119 on Thursday and Friday; it has reached at least 116 every day this month.
- Burbank: 114 on Thursday and Friday, tying the all-time high.
- Long Beach: 109 on Friday, a calendar-day record and fifth hottest of all time. It has reached at least 100 on four straight days, tied for most on record. A fifth is possible Monday.
Widespread dangerous heat is forecast to persist in Southern California for one more day before starting to ease Tuesday. By Wednesday, highs will decrease into the 70s and 80s in most areas outside of the deserts because of a wind off the ocean.
More dangerous fire weather on Monday
A red-flag warning for dangerous fire weather runs until 11 p.m. Monday in the Santa Ynez Mountains and coastal areas in southwest Santa Barbara County because of the combination of heat, low humidity and strong winds. Gusts of 30 mph or higher remain possible, with erratic and gustier winds a threat near any large fires.
By mid- to late week, cooler air arriving from the northwest should temporarily lower the fire risk in much of California. However, the influx of cooler air may increase winds in the far eastern part of state into Nevada. The National Weather Service is monitoring the areas for heightened fire risks.
