A wildland fire burning in remote terrain south of Beaumont and Banning prompted a voluntary evacuation warning last night, and the closure of a key local commuter link, Highway 79. Residents in the Morongo Basin, including Yucca Valley, Joshua Tree, and Twentynine Palms, mistakenly received alerts last night notifying them about fire evacuations. A Cal Fire spokeswoman said the cause of the mistaken alert is under investigation. The evacuation warning covered homes between Highland Home Road south of Beaumont and Highway 243 south of Banning, and included the San Jacinto Mountain communities of Silent Valley and Poppet Flats, according to the Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department.
By 6:30 this morning, the fire had scorched 5,000 acres, and is 10 percent contained, and more than 300 firefighters are on the scene. County Fire Battalion Chief Scott Tuttle of Yucca Valley is at the fire directing a strike team. The fast-growing Manzanita fire blaze was sparked by a vehicle collision in Lamb Canyon and tore through 1,200 acres in its first three hours, spreading east through dry fuel on a windy 100-degree day.
MANZANITA FIRE NEAR BANNING UP TO 5,000 ACRES; FALSE ALERT RATTLES LOCAL RESIDENTS
