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UPDATE: Holy Fire 92 percent contained, full containment expected by Aug. 21

Published August 19, 2018 7:06 AM

The Holy Fire burning in Riverside and Orange counties is 92 percent contained, having charred 22,887 acres, with full containment expected on Tuesday, August 21.

Officials say fire personnel has been reduced to 550 firefighters. Crews are continuing to mop up burn areas and extend containment lines.

A voluntary evacuation order for residents of the Trilogy community in Riverside County’s Temescal Valley was lifted Wednesday as firefighters worked to knock down hot spots along the northern edge of the fire in Anderson Canyon, south of Corona.

Heavy fuels and steep terrain make final control difficult on the north end of the fire in Anderson Canyon in Riverside County and to the south in Orange County’s Bell Canyon.

This same rugged terrain, heavy fuels, and inaccessibility require water drops from helicopters to support crews on the ground and enable them to safely complete mop up and secure the fire line, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

All evacuations were lifted Wednesday but recreational areas and campgrounds remain closed, including Blue Jay and Falcon Campgrounds, as well as areas north of Ortega (74) Highway and south of Blackstar Canyon Road and Skyline Dr.

School districts in Riverside County affected by the fire delayed their first days of classes until next week. The Lake Elsinore Unified School District will go back on Aug. 20.

Schools in the Corona-Norco Unified School District located south of the 91 Freeway and east of Border Avenue in Corona also pushed back the first day of school until Monday.

The city of Corona announced a day camp to help working parents of students this week. It will be open 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Fees are $110 for residents and $140 for non-residents, with priority for parents of students at fire-affected schools.

In Orange County, firefighters reported progress on containment lines in the area around Santiago Peak and attacked active flames in the Bell Canyon area in the southern part of the county.

The fire destroyed 18 homes, 12 in Orange County and six in Riverside County, since it erupted around 1:30 p.m. Aug. 6 near Holy Jim Canyon and Trabuco Creek roads, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Tony Bommarito said. The fire dramatically increased in size near the Horsethief Canyon area on Aug. 8, then jumped the North Main Divide dirt road, burning into the Lake Elsinore area of Riverside County, Bommarito said.

Bommarito noted that the area probably hasn’t burned since the early 1980s.

The man accused of starting the fire, 51-year-old Forrest Gordon Clark, remained jailed in Santa Ana in lieu of $1 million bail. He labeled the arson charges against him a “lie” and insisted he was being threatened by gang members.

Clark was charged with aggravated arson damaging at least five inhabited structures, arson of inhabited property, arson of forest and criminal threats, all felonies, as well as two misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest. His next court date is October 10.