Firefighters worked Friday to clear a ring of vegetation around a 250-acre brushfire that started on the edge of the Cleveland National Forest near Corona and threatened homes, prompting mandatory evacuation orders.
The noninjury Skyline Fire was reported shortly after 3 p.m. Thursday in the area of Skyline Drive and Burrero Way, near the entrance to a popular hiking spot. By 10 p.m. the fire was 5 percent contained, according to a Corona Fire Department official.
The containment figure remained unchanged as of 8:15 a.m. Friday, the Corona Fire Department reported.
Riverside County Fire Department staff took charge of deploying resources because the blaze started in an unincorporated area, and two dozen engine crews and eight hand crews from the county, Corona, Riverside and the U.S. Forest Service converged on the location, with 240 personnel working to contain the fire, according to a county fire department spokeswoman. The Corona Fire Department assumed command of the blaze at 8 p.m. Thursday
A house on Trudy Way was in the path of the fire, and crews established a protective shield around the property, sparing it from damage, according to reports from the scene. Other properties were threatened by the flames, leading officials to issue a mandatory evacuation order for the Orchard Glen Community housing development.
In all, about 1,500 structures were threatened, but none was damaged, officials said.
Most evacuations were lifted as of 10 p.m. Thursday, but officials Friday said mandatory evacuation orders remained for some homes in the Mabey Canyon and Orchard Glen communities. Specific street address information was available at http://www.coronaca.gov.
Evacuees were directed to shelter at Corona High School or another safe location.
Corona police shut down Foothill Parkway between Elysia Street and Paseo Grande to prevent traffic from interrupting firefighting efforts.
During the height of the firefighting effort, six air tankers and three water-dropping helicopters were deployed to the scene of the wildfire, which spread through vegetation at a moderate rate amid light winds, officials said.
Friday, one water tender and four helicopters were deployed, with “numerous” air tankers also available as needed, officials said.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
