Hundreds of Firefighters Work to Contain 'Highway Fire' Near Prado Dam

By City News Service:

More than 650 firefighters will work Monday to extend a containment line of cleared brush around a fire that has scorched about 1,020 acres of vegetation in the Prado Basin near Corona.

• Smoke from Prado Dam Blaze Prompts Air Quality Advisory

The so-called Highway Fire, which was reported about 6:15 p.m. Saturday near the Corona (71) and Riverside (91) freeways, was traced to an unattended cooking fire, said Cal Fire Captain Liz Brown. It forced the evacuation of hundreds of homes as it continued to burn throughout the weekend, blanketing the Inland Empire with smoke, and sending acrid air as far as the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles.

Riverside County fire units and counterparts from a host of agencies were battling the fire, which at last count was 35 percent contained, along with two helicopters and a pair of bulldozers, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.

At the height of the blaze, residents of about 300 homes along Bluff Street, Homestead Road and Stagecoach Road were ordered to evacuate and the American Red Cross opened an evacuation center at Riley Gymnasium in Norco. An evacuation center for horses and other large animals was opened at Ingalls Park in Norco.

The evacuation orders were lifted about 6 a.m. Sunday.

The densely vegetated area hadn’t burned in decades, fire officials said, and smoke will likely linger in the area for days.

Those with sensitivity to smoke exposure, including people with allergies or asthma, were advised to remain indoors with the air conditioning on.

Motorists were advised to drive cautiously in areas of low-lying smoke with reduced visibility and to look out for fire equipment.

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