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Fire Jul 15, 2023
Thomas Shoots, Cal Fire public information officer, discusses the Rabbit Fire from the scene of the blaze in Lakeview. | Photo courtesy of the Riverside County Fire Department/Facebook
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A brush fire that erupted Friday in the Riverside County community of Lakeview scorched 3,300 acres with 0% containment and prompted an evacuation order covering approximately 25 homes — and two smaller wildfires prompted evacuations in Beaumont and Moreno Valley.
What the Riverside County Fire Department has dubbed the Rabbit Fire was reported about 3:25 p.m. in the area of Jack Rabbit Trail and Gilman Springs Road, just east of Mystic Lake and roughly halfway between Moreno Valley and San Jacinto, a department official said.
Engine and hand crews from multiple departments were sent to the location and encountered flames moving rapidly through open space.
A man was burned at the location, according to officials. Reports indicated he may have been in or near a vehicle that caught fire.
The victim, whose name was not disclosed, was taken to Riverside University Health System-Medical Center in Moreno Valley for treatment.
California Highway Patrol officers and sheriff’s deputies were diverting northbound vehicles away from Gilman Springs Road and onto Bridge Street, an officer said.
Additional road closure were in place for Highway 79 in the Lambs Canyon area from Gilman Springs Road to California Avenue.
Shortly before 9 p.m., an evacuation order for approximately 25 homes north of Gilman Springs Road was issued.
North of Moreno Valley, a brush fire that erupted Friday in a canyon burned 437 acres and prompted precautionary evacuations before crews slowed it down.
What was dubbed the Reche Fire was reported about 1 p.m. in the area of Reche Canyon Road and High Country Drive, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
Containment was 5% as of 8 p.m.
Multiple engine and hand crews from the Riverside County Fire Department, Idyllwild Fire Protection District, Cal Fire-San Bernardino County and other agencies were sent to the location and encountered flames moving at a rapid rate through medium brush.
Outbuildings in the path of the fire were reportedly damaged as the flames pushed to the east.
The area where the blaze started is lightly populated, with both single-family dwellings and mobile homes. However, the fire was pointed in the direction of a larger community bordering the Badlands.
An evacuation order was issued impacting residences south of Reche Canyon, north of Alta Vista Drive, west of Locust Avenue and east of Reche Vista Drive.
The evacuation order was reduced to a warning at around 8:10 p.m. An evacuation warning was posted for a neighboring community earlier Friday, which remains in place.
At the height of the blaze, at least six Cal Fire air tankers and six water-dropping helicopters made runs on the blaze, successfully slowing its advance, enabling crews to start tightening up gaps.
As of 5:30 p.m. Friday, all air tankers had been released, diverted to other wildfires, while only a couple of helicopters remained on the fire lines.
California Highway Patrol officers were conducting traffic control in the area due to the large amount of public safety equipment, but the fire was not threatening Reche Canyon Road.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
And in Beaumont, a brush fire that broke out Friday just south of Interstate 10 in Beaumont quickly spread across 105 acres within a couple of hours and triggered evacuations on the southern edge of the city.
What the Riverside County Fire Department has dubbed the Highland Fire was reported 25% contained at around 7:20 p.m. Friday.
The fire was reported about 3 p.m. along Highland Springs Avenue and Sunningdale Street, near Breckenridge Avenue, according to the a department official.
Engine and hand crews from several deparments, including the Soboba Reservation Fire Department, were sent to the location and encountered flames moving at a “critical rate,” according to the county fire officials.
The fire department initially indicated that the fire had grown to 225 acres within about an hour, but the size was later downgraded thanks to “more accurate mapping,” an official said.
Cal Fire air tankers and water-dropping helicopters were requested and diverted from the larger Reche Fire north of Moreno Valley that was slowing late Friday afternoon.
The flames were on the outer rim of the subdivision between Highland Springs to the west and Sunningdale Street to the east, and an evacuation order for those residences was issued shortly after 4 p.m., according to the fire department.
All evacuations had been lifted as of 9 p.m., a department official said.
The cause of the blaze was not immediately known.
