Lake Fire Rages in San Bernardino Mountains for Third Day

Photos courtesy of the San Bernardino County Fire Department

Firefighters were working overnight to battle the Lake Fire, which has burned more than 11,000 acres and is about 10 percent contained but no structures were believed to be lost, a fire official said Friday.

“We were hoping that the overnight dew would lower the acreage burned,” San Bernardino County Fire Information Officer Lisa Jones said.

The winds are more settled and moving in the easterly direction, which why more smoke is visible Friday, she said.

Read More:

• Evacuations Ordered As Massive Wildfire Spreads Through San Bernardino Mountains

Some areas could experience air quality that reaches unhealthy levels or worse because of the smoke, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

People in the smoke’s path were advised to avoid unnecessary outdoor activities and children or people with respiratory problems or heart disease should stay indoors, according to the AQMD.

Overnight, the fire pushed further east into the Heart Bar and Coon Creek areas, and also moved farther south into the San Gorgonio Wilderness in the Ten Thousand Foot Ridge areas. High winds have hampered efforts to fight this fire with air tankers and firefighters have been using helicopters, officials said.

Evacuations are still in place for areas east of Angelus Oaks, Onyx Summit, Barton Flats, Seven Oaks, Heart Bar and homes off of Rainbow Lane. Officials have not ordered an evacuation for Morongo or Pioneertown, but a contingency plan is in place if the fire moves close enough to those areas.

Because the fire is so close to many hiking trails, officials have closed all trails into the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area. Pacific Crest Trail is closed of Preserve to Onyx Summit and Highway 38 is closed from the east side of Angelus Oaks to Lake Williams.

The fire was reported just before 4 p.m. Wednesday and is burning east of Camp de Benneville Pines, according to the San Bernardino County Fire Department.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Stay with Patch for more updates on the fire throughout the day.