Firefighters up against high heat, steep terrain
Crews battling wildfire north of Big Bear Lake rely on aircraft and containment lines.
Despite persistently high temperatures working against them, firefighters have kept a 1,500-acre blaze burning north of Big Bear Lake from spreading deeper into the wooded area, authorities said Thursday.
The Holcomb fire started Monday afternoon and has burned 1,540 acres north of Big Bear and Baldwin lakes, where it made a brief push east toward California 18 and triggered mandatory evacuations earlier this week.
Since then, crews have relied heavily on water- and flame retardant-dropping aircraft to attack the blaze while they build containment lines around the fire, said Anna Bribiescas, a spokeswoman at the fire’s incident command center.
The work has been slow going in Holcomb Canyon’s rocky and steep terrain.
“This is big horn sheep country. It’s not for people,” Bribiescas said.
Hundred-year-old trees that had held boulders in place on hillsides are now gone, meaning firefighters have to watch their every step and listen for rolling, burning logs or tumbling rocks in the darkness.
“It’s slow and accurate but not fast,” she said of the work.
Officials said overnight winds pushed the fire’s northern face back on itself, limiting its spread, while defensive fire work to the west and south limited its expansion. The fire is 10% contained, officials said.
The days ahead will present challenges, however. The National Weather Service warned of stubbornly high temperatures around the fire and issued a red flag warning for neighboring counties.
The high temperatures, increased wind speeds and dropping humidity mean the conditions are ripe for a fast-moving wildfire in the mountains surrounding Los Angeles, forecasters warned.
More than 1,200 firefighters are battling the fire.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, and authorities have asked for the public’s help. The U.S. Forest Service is asking for anyone who was in the area of the Pacific Crest Trail near Holcomb Valley Road north of California 18 or in the Doble Trail Camp from 6 p.m. Saturday to 3:05 p.m. Monday to call (909) 382-2699.