The roughly 1,500-acre brush fire in the Santa Ana River bottom, impacting Jurupa Valley and Riverside, is now 83% contained, Cal Fire reported Saturday.
With relatively little active fire remaining, authorities have also lifted all evacuation warnings for properties in the vicinity of the fire.
The “Bain fire” was reported at 11:22 a.m. Tuesday on the north side of the dry channel, in the area of Bain Street and Limonite Avenue, just north of the Hidden Valley Nature Center, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
As of Friday afternoon, officials declared the brusher had not budged from the estimated 1,497 acres at which it was mapped Thursday morning.
That progress led to both county fire command staff and division chiefs for the Riverside Fire Department to jointly announce cancellation of the remaining evacuation warnings. On Thursday, most mandatory evacuation orders had been downgraded to warnings.
“Residents may continue to see or smell drift smoke in the area due to lingering activity,” according to a county fire statement. “Personnel will continue canvassing neighborhoods to support cleanup and ongoing safety efforts.”
Full containment of the wildfire was expected during the holiday weekend.
The heavily used Van Buren Boulevard corridor connecting Riverside and Jurupa Valley, which was shut down at the height of the blaze, was fully reopened Friday.
The Western Riverside County Animal Shelter at Clay Street and Van Buren, which was evacuated Tuesday night, with all of the animals relocated to the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus, was no longer under an evacuation order. But it was uncertain when the facility might reopen. The Department of Animal Services requested that residents able to temporarily foster a pet to free up space visit the San Jacinto shelter and pick one up.
Numerous engine and hand crews from the county, Riverside Fire Department, Corona Fire Department, Ontario Fire Department and other agencies were sent to the brusher when it erupted, encountering wind-driven flames moving through thick brush.
The flames spread toward groups of homes in the area of Arlington and Western avenues in Riverside, leading to the evacuation of dozens of residences around that intersection, including adjacent ones that intersect Sunnyvale Drive, Mountain High Drive, Western Avenue and Western Hills Drive.
Three residents suffered smoke inhalation injuries, while another person suffered unspecified traumatic injuries during the height of the fire. All of the victims were transported to Riverside Community Hospital for treatment.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.