Fire at green waste facility in Thousand Palms

A pile of cut tamarisk trees caught fire on private property for the second time this week — near Vista Chino and Rio Del Sol Road in Thousand Palms.

The fire was reported around five Wednesday morning. According to Mike Smith, a Cal Fire spokesperson, the fire was 100% contained, but there were still some flames.

The debris was what was left from the trees that caught fire along Interstate 10 back in 2009.

Nearly 300×150 feet of land burned near the same location that burned on Monday. The cause of both incidents are still under investigation.

Firefighters cleared the scene around 2:45 Wed. afternoon — they said what was left of the fire would be in the hands of the property owners. Firefighters would help if the owners needed them.

Some neighbors down the hill told KESQ they were unaware of the fire, while others called it an inconvenience.

“You can see more of the smoke and it creates a haze and hurts my eyes…being outside is not good for me right now,” said Karren Mitchell, of Thousand Palms.

The smoke could be seen for miles, from I-10 and around the valley.

“I noticed it when I got off the bus. It was really hazy in that direction, it just looked weird,” said Orquidia Flores, who works in Thousand Palms.

Mitchell said she hopes a fire like this can be prevented in the future.

“It’d be nice if they could clean up the area so it doesn’t happen again,” said Mitchell.

Firefighters said we can expect to see more smoke for the next few days.