About 200 firefighters from San Bernardino and Riverside counties were on the scene Sunday battling a blaze in Fontana that has burned hundreds of acres and threatened structures, the latest in a series of fires to ravage Southern California.
The fire had grown to 400 acres and was 80 percent contained by shortly after 9 p.m., San Bernardino County Fire Department spokesman Eric Sherwin said.
Meanwhile, further north in Fresno County, the Basin Fire has become one of the state's second-largest wildfires, and continues to grow as bitterly cold weather is forecast for inland California this week.
The Fontana Fire, also known as the Sierra Fire, was first reported around 2:30 p.m. near Sierra and Jurupa streets south of the 10 Freeway. The fire was climbing up a hillside and then fanned by winds as it crested, Sherwin said.
There were no reports of damage Sunday, and officials had warned that buildings could be at risk but stopped short of calling for evacuations. By late Sunday, the danger to the building had been “mitigated,” Sherwin said, and firefighters remained on scene to strengthen containment lines.
Two firefighters suffered minor injuries and were taken to a local hospital.
The cause of the fires is still unknown. Sherwin urged caution due to record heat in parts of the state where dry grass can easily ignite and spread. Even sparks from a lawnmower can start a wildfire, he said.
“Southern California is on fire. These fires are happening all over the place,” he said. “Anything we can do to prevent fires is to reduce one of those fires that could threaten homeowners.”
A fire broke out in Moreno Valley, Riverside County, on Saturday, burning more than 200 acres. It was one of about 10 fires burning across the state over the weekend, according to Cal Fire.
The largest of the fires is in Fresno County, where the Basin Fire, which started on Wednesday, had burned about 12,000 acres by Sunday night and remains uncontained, according to Cal Fire.
Also in the Central Valley, the Fresno June Lightning Complex Fire, which began burning Monday, has burned more than 10,600 acres, according to the latest report from Cal Fire. Authorities said the blaze was 61% contained as of Sunday night.
