Cottonwood Fire Nearing Full Containment
The fire has scorched 2,049 acres about four miles east of Hemet
Monday, Aug 31, 2009 | Updated 1:00 PM PST
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The Cottonwood Fire between Hemet and Idyllwild was 95 percent contained today, with full containment expected by Monday night, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
The fire has scorched 2,049 acres about four miles east of Hemet and the Valle Vista area in the San Jacinto Mountains. The blaze started shortly after 5 p.m. Thursday, about 10 miles east of Hemet.
Full containment of the blaze is expected by 6 p.m., but control of the wildfire could take several more days, said Michelle Caldwell, a USFS spokeswoman.
“It's not determined when it will be controlled,” Caldwell said. “They will be checking for hot spots.”
Five firefighters suffered heat-related illnesses or injury, she said. All were treated at hospitals and released.
About 662 personnel -- 28 engines, five hand crews, three bulldozers, three helicopters and 16 water tenders -- were fighting the blaze, according to Caldwell.
Most of the resources initially assigned to fight the blaze were sent to fight the Oak Glen Fire in San Bernardino County and the Station Fire above La Canada Flintridge and Altadena, said Marc Peebles, a public information officer with the San Bernardino National Forest Fire Information Center.
“Fire incident commanders have been focusing on getting rid of resources off this fire as quickly as possible,” Peebles said.
The fire was a significant threat to the mountain communities of Pine Cove and Idyllwild in the first few days of the blaze, he said.
“Once we got some crews in there to get some containment lines, it dramatically reduced the community threat,” Peebles said. “We were fortunate that were were not able to have a significant wind event.”
State Route 74 between Mountain Center and Hemet was reopened Sunday. The Cottonwood Fire earlier burned on both sides of the road and damaged guard rails. The road was closed from Borco Street in Valle Vista to state Route 243 in Mountain Center for two days.
A few forest access roads were closed in the northwest fire area, near Bee Canyon Road, San Jacinto Truck Trail, Control Road, Indian Mountain Truck Trail, Red Hill Truck Trail and Sewer Pond Road.
The roads will remain closed until fire conditions subside, authorities said, adding that wood and charcoal fires are prohibited across the entire district -- even at developed sites.
The fire may have been sparked by a transformer problem or a downed electrical line about a quarter-mile east of Bee Canyon, but the cause was still under investigation.
