Firefighters expand containment around Jurupa Valley fire
Despite 25-mile-per-hour winds, crews todayexpanded their containment lines around a brush fire that started on the JurupaValley side of the Santa Ana River bottom, scorching 311 acres and damaging twostructures.
The non-injury fire, which broke out about 4:45 p.m. Thursday at RioRoad and Calle Hermosa, on the edge of Rancho Jurupa Park, was 40 percentcontained by 1 p.m. today., according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
The National Weather Service issued a wind advisory until 10 a.m.Saturday, forecasting an offshore breeze of 15 to 25 mph, with gusts up to 45mph below canyons and passes. Humidity was below 15 percent in the Riversidearea this afternoon.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a smoke advisory,warning that people in vulnerable health and children in Riverside, JurupaValley and other communities should stay indoors as much as possible.
Nearly 200 firefighters from Riverside and Orange counties, the Pechangaand Morongo Indian Reservations, and the cities of Riverside, Murrieta andCorona, as well as inmate hand crews, worked to surround the fire. There was noword on when it might be fully contained.
A water-dropping helicopter was making periodic runs on the fire today.Flare-ups were reported in multiple locations as brush continued to smolder.
Thursday evening, a mobile home about a quarter-mile downwind from themain fire burst into flames, but no one was injured. A storage building alsowas damaged, and nearby homes were threatened, but crews mustered all availableresources to prevent the properties from burning.
The Riverside Fire Department called for voluntary evacuations of homesThursday in the area of Grassy Trail Drive, Greenbrier Drive and Old Mill Road,all of which abut Anza Narrows Park. The evacuation request was lifted a fewhours later. Access to some riverbank locations frequented by joggers andbicyclists was shut down.
There were initial reports that downed power lines may have triggeredthe fire, but officials could not confirm a cause.
Approximately 1,846 Riverside residents lost power during the blaze,said county fire spokeswoman Jody Hagemann. Service was restored overnight.
