Fire Scorches Nearly 200 Acres Near Corona Golf Course

A fire broke out today in an orange grove south of Corona and spread into the Cleveland National Forest, scorching nearly 200 acres but not immediately threatening any homes or other structures.

The blaze was reported at 12:22 p.m. near the Trilogy Golf Course, off of Trilogy Parkway and Temescal Canyon Road, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.

More than 150 firefighters from the county, surrounding cities and the U.S. Forest Service were battling the flames on the ground and from the air.

A helicopter and two air tankers were dropping fire retardant on the blaze, which moved into high terrain on the Orange County side of the Cleveland National Forest, away from populated areas.

According to witnesses, pest control workers may have ignited vegetation at the location while trying to smoke out bees, but that hasn’t been confirmed.