Fast-growing California wildfires destroy homes, send residents scrambling for safety
Thousands of homes in Riverside County, California, were evacuated on Sunday after the Hawarden and Eagle fires sparked, consuming more than 2,000 acres combined in less than 24 hours.
Conditions ripe for wildfire spread across the West
New wildfires started over the weekend in California and across the west where heat alerts are in place for millions of Americas. Meanwhile, Southwest monsoonal rains are causing flooding in New Mexico.
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Two large wildfires sparked in Riverside County, California, on Sunday, sending residents fleeing as flames quickly spread, destroying three homes and threatening more than 1,000 others.
The Hawarden Fire started around 1 p.m. Sunday south of downtown Riverside, west of the Moreno Valley Freeway, as a rapidly spreading vegetation blaze.
Riverside Fire Department Deputy Chief Steve McKinster said during a Sunday news conference that three homes were destroyed by the fire on Sunday afternoon and four others were damaged. McKinster said about 1,500 homes are in the surrounding area. Evacuations were ordered, and the Riverside Police Department helped to escort residents out of the area.
Homes are threated as the Hawarden Fire burns in Riverside, California, July 21, 2024. (Photo by David SWANSON / AFP) (Photo by DAVID SWANSON/AFP via Getty Images)
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Riverside Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson said an evacuation center is set up at the Orange Terrace Community Center.
"It’s a scary day here in Riverside," she said on Sunday.
The City of Riverside Fire Department continues to fight the fire, which has burned nearly 530 acres and is 25% contained.
Also on Sunday, the Eagle Fire started in Riverside County. As of Monday morning, the blaze had consumed more than 1,700 acres and is 65% contained, according to the CAL Fire Riverside Unit.
The quickly spreading fire prompted officials to order evacuations for multiple communities near Eagle Canyon Road, east of Corona. Many others are under evacuation warnings and being told to listen for updates.
CalFire crews monitor as the Eagle Fire burns in Riverside, California, July 21, 2024. (Photo by DAVID SWANSON/AFP via Getty Images)
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Conditions across the West are ripe for a spark to quickly spread with excessively hot temperatures and dry grasses creating dangerous wildfire weather. On Sunday, when California's latest fires started, some 30 million people across the West were under heat alerts.
The National Weather Service has issued a Heat Advisory for San Bernardino and Riverside counties through Wednesday night. High temperatures are forecast to top out above 105 degrees.
Heat Alerts for the West through Thursday.
(FOX Weather)
Wildfires in the region have degraded air quality for Riverside, San Bernardino, Ontario and other communities, prompting the South Coast Air Quality Management District to issue an air quality alert for fine particle pollution from wildfire smoke. Residents are being told to remain indoors as much as possible through Monday afternoon.