Firefighters made good progress Thursday in fighting the Apple fire that started a week ago in the Oak Glen area. The fire is now over 28,000 acres with 30 percent containment as of Thursday night.
Unified Fire Command said the smoke in the area was due to heavy fuels burning on the top of Yucaipa Ridge, but the flames are headed toward a rocky area with less available fuel. The fire also burned through heavy fuel in the Millard Canyon area, but it stayed on the western slopes of the canyon.
Planes and helicopters built a line of fire retardant today with the goal of preventing the flames to move into the communities of Morongo Valley and Pioneertown. The fire has stayed in place in the San Gorgonio Wilderness to the north. However, an evacuation warning was issued for Morongo Valley Thursday afternoon, and the evacuation warning in Riverside County was expanded to include the area east of Whitewater, north of Interstate 10, west of Highway 62, and south of the San Bernardino County line. The fire is still about 8 to 10 miles from Morongo Valley. This evacuation warning is voluntary. Residents who are elderly or invalid, or who have large animals or livestock, are encouraged to evacuate, but evacuation is not mandatory at this time. Residents who live in Morongo Valley, Pioneertown, or Rimrock are urged to formalize a plan of what they will take with them if they must evacuate and where they will go. It’s also recommended that residents prep their homes and properties in case a fire comes through. See Morongo Basin Broadcasting Facebook page, or the z1077fm.com website for specific instructions.
Cal Fire photo
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