Wildfire Balloons to 3,500 Acres near California's Cajon Pass; Mandatory Evacuations Ordered; Vehicles, Homes Destroyed

Carolyn Williams
Published: July 17,2015

Current Conditions and Radar

A 3,500-acre wildfire rapidly spread near Cajon Pass in the San Bernardino Mountains of California late Friday afternoon, igniting some cars on Interstate 15.
The fire started around 2:30 p.m, burning 20 vehicles and forcing motorists to abandon another 70 to 80 vehicles, KTLA-TV reported. Two minor injuries were reported.
"Hot, dry and somewhat breezy conditions are in place over the fire – temperatures are in the mid 90s, the humidity is between 15 and 19 percent, and winds are blowing at 10 to 20 mph. While the conditions aren't extreme, they are favorable for the spread of wildfires," said weather.com senior meteorologist Nick Wiltgen.
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Motorist Chris Patterson, 43, told the Associated Press, "It's crazy, you're watching black clouds and white clouds of smoke, there's a ridgeline off to my right ... and it looks like any second flames will come over the ridgeline."
At least five homes have burned, NBC Los Angeles said. Another 50 homes are threatened, and several other structures have caught fire.
Captain Josh Wilkins of the San Bernardino County Fire Department told KTLA, “Currently, we have not only a multi-casaulty incident, but a large wildfire threatening structures."

Five ambulances and five paramedic engines were rushed to the scene due to the possibility of civilian burn victims, according to the SB Fire Department. Motorists are being asked to stay in their vehicles to avoid injury by water drops.
All lanes of north and southbound I-15 were closed due to the blaze, according to San Bernardino National Forest’s Twitter.

Mandatory evacuations were ordered for areas of the Baldy Mesa community, says InciWeb, and motorists should avoid the area.
"People are spectating from our parking lot, running around getting water and beer. It's chaos. One man came in and said, 'Oh my, my house is getting burned'," Baldy Mesa gas station owner Melissa Atalla told the AP.
An evacuation center has been established at Serrano High School in Phelan, California.
"We have a long night ahead of us," said Wilkins.
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