Evacuation orders, warnings back in place for some mountain communities as Line Fire flares up
An evacuation warning has been upgraded to an order for the community of Angelus Oaks. Earlier, an evacuation order was also issued for the Seven Oaks community.
Evacuation warnings are in place for the Boulder Bay area of Big Bear, as well as some Big Bear Lake communities like Sugarloaf, Moonridge, and the area south of Erwin Lake.
"The rapid spread of the fire was not expected and resources were scrambling to try to get in place to make sure that there was structure protection in the Seven Oaks area," said Chloe Castillo, a Public Information Officer with CAL FIRE San Bernardino.
Near Angelus Oaks, News Channel Three crews saw hand crews clearing brush as helicopters and air tankers dropped water and fire retardant. The fire was also seen creeping closer to structures along the valley.
Firefighters say weather conditions – like the warm weather, dry conditions, and mountain winds – have been challenging for firefighters. The steep terrain also led to the rapid spread of the fire.
Fire officials say they knew the fire would burn the Santa Ana River drainage area, but the intensity and speed that it burned caught them off guard.
The fire grew by nearly 3,000 acres on Sunday – the largest increase since September 11th.
Castillo says about 1,700 firefighters are currently assigned to the fire. This is roughly 500 more than the beginning of the day, when 1,176 were listed as assigned. Fire officials have requested additional resources and expect a drastic increase in personnel over the next few days.
