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Fire Oct 12, 2024
A nighttime aerial view of the Line Fire from a photo taken earlier this month. | Photo courtesy of the San Bernardino National Forest
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The 43,978-acre Line Fire was 94% contained and has been active in San Bernardino County for over a month, fire officials reported Saturday.
The wildfire has destroyed one structure, damaged four and caused injuries to six firefighters after erupting Sept. 5 near Baseline and Alpine streets in the mountains north of Highland, according to Cal Fire. The cause of the fire was arson.
“Contingency lines around the Line Fire have been tested this week by strong winds, but thanks to the hard work of firefighters and … lines have held well and have not been compromised,” San Bernardino National Forest officials said in a statement Saturday. “(On Friday) an interior pocket of smoke from a smoldering tree was mitigated by air resources. Line improvement and line backhaul activities will consume a great deal of firefightwers’ time the next few days, along with suppression repair on roads, drainages, corridors and dozer lines. Resource advisors are lending expertise and monitoring rehabilitation efforts around and within the perimeter of the fire.”
Despite favorably higher humidity, calm winds and lower temperatures hindering the blaze’s growth, fire danger remains “very high,” forest officials said. Fire-danger indices are registering higher now then when the Line Fire began, “and any new starts will be resistant to initial attack. The public is asked to be extremely diligent, firewise, and fire aware. With the influx of thousands of extra visitors into the area for a foot race and festival and the start of modern gun hunting season, overnight patrol crews will be staffed strategically around the fire perimeter through the weekend.”
Smoke will be visible well within the interior of the fire where challenging mountain terrain has made accessing flare-ups difficult, officials said. Aircraft will drop water Saturday and will be available to fight any new fires.
A federal, state and county debris-flow task force is being assembled to assist residents in safeguarding homes and properties from potential devastation caused by flood damage during winter rainstorms.
No evacuation orders or warnings were currently in place for the Line Fire, forest officials said.
Highway 330 remains closed from Highland Avenue to Highway 18.
A total of 475 personnel were fighting the fire Saturday, according to the San Bernardino National Forest.
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