Nearly 400 firefighters struggle to contain California wildfire that has destroyed 12,000 acres
Nearly 8,000 people are evacuated as 400 firefighters struggle to contain Southern California wildfire in 105-degree heatApple Fire was spreading 75 miles east of Los Angeles on Saturday, destroying at least 12,000 acres Nearly 8,000 residents in more than 2,500 households were forced to evacuate their homes on SaturdayCalFire officials said several homes were in the path of the flames, but were not in imminent dangerOne house was destroyed as CalFire officials deployed air tankers to drop fire retardant from above By Ariel Zilber For Dailymail.com and Associated Press Published: 21:17 EDT, 1 August 2020 | Updated: 09:39 EDT, 2 August 2020 Advertisement A wildfire that has destroyed at least 12,000 acres northwest of Palm Springs flared up Saturday, with evacuation orders for nearly 8,000 people in more than 2,500 households as firefighters fought the blaze in triple-degree heat.An unspecified number of homes were in the path of the flames but were not in imminent danger, CalFire captain Fernando Herrera told the Riverside Press-Enterprise.The blaze, which began as two adjacent fires, was reported shortly before 5pm on Friday in Cherry Valley, an unincorporated area near the city of Beaumont in Riverside County. A firefighter battles a brush fire at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, California, on Saturday. A wildfire northwest of Palm Springs flared up Saturday afternoon, prompting authorities to issue new evacuation orders as crews fought the blaze in triple-degree heat. Diane Brickley comes back home to take care of her goats after she was evacuated as the Apple Fire burns nearby in Cherry Valley on SaturdayA mouse runs as flames flare at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley. Authorities issued new evacuation orders as firefighters fought the blaze in triple-degree heatFlames leapt along brushy ridge tops and came close to homes while some 375 firefighters attacked it from the ground and air, authorities said.The blaze, dubbed the Apple Fire, doubled in size overnight and is over 18 square miles. About 7,800 people have been told to evacuate over 2,500 homes, according to fire officials. Hundreds of people in foothill neighborhoods north of Beaumont fell under mandatory evacuation orders.Flames flare behind firefighters and fire trucks at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, California, on SaturdayThe blaze began as two separate fires Friday evening in Cherry Valley, an unincorporated area near the city of Beaumont in Riverside County As of early Sunday morning, the fire has destroyed 12,000 acres in Cherry Valley and the surrounding areas of Riverside and San Bernardino Counties More than 370 firefighters responded to the fire, which began on Friday. Clouds of smoke were seen for miles A firefighter stands next to a fire truck as flames flare at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, California on SaturdayCalifornia authorities said on Saturday that roughly 7,800 residents in over 2,500 households had been ordered to evacuate Fire officials said that open land with thick vegetation has provided ‘quite a bit of fuel for that fire to continue to burn [and] have a lot of intensity’ An air tanker drops fire retardant at the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, California, on Saturday Fire officials said they were having difficulty assessing the damage because the scorching temperatures were making the ground too hot for rescue workers to walk on Flames and smoke could be seen shooting hundreds of feet into the air in Cherry Valley, California, on Saturday The fire had grown from 700 acres on Friday evening to 4,125 acres by Saturday evening and was 0% contained, according to the County fire department and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection The image above shows another angle in which an air tanker drops fire retardant at the Apple Fire in Cherry ValleyThe image above shows a coyote running away from the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, California, on SaturdayA mouse is seen above running away from the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, a community about 75 miles east of Los AngelesAn air tanker drops fire retardant to help firefighters on the ground battle the blaze in Cherry Valley on SaturdayA structure is seen above engulfed in flames by the Apple Fire in Cherry Valley, California, on Saturday One home has been destroyed. Herrera said firefighters were having difficulty assessing the damage because the charred ground was too hot to walk on.The National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning as Southern California found itself in the midst of a heat wave.The mercury hit 105 degrees in Palm Springs by Saturday afternoon.The weather service said ‘dangerously hot conditions’ were expected to continue into evening because of high pressure over the region.
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