Fueled by thick, tinder-dry vegetation that hasn’t burned in nearly four decades, a brush fire raced through the Cleveland National Forest in the Holy Jim Canyon area, rapidly exploding in size as flames gobbled up acreage as it moved from Orange County into Riverside County.
The “Holy Fire” was reported about 1:15 p.m., initially near Holy Jim Canyon and Trabuco Creek roads, said Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Tony Bommarito. Initially reported at seven- to 10-acres, the fire raced its way across about 75 acres within about 30 minutes. As of mid-afternoon, the fire had already scorched more than 700 acres.
As of 6 p.m., the brusher was 1,200 acres and rolling downhill toward the Main Divide forest road, within sight of south Corona, El Cerrito and Glen Ivy Hot Springs.
The fire, burning amid near-triple-digit temperatures but minimal wind, sent up a massive cloud of smoke that could be seen for miles in all directions. Smoke from the fire tinted the skies above Corona, Riverside and Moreno Valley, turning the atmosphere a rust brown with several hours of daylight still left.
Crews from Orange County, Riverside County and Cal Fire were working through the dense vegetation to attempt to get a line around the blaze, but there was no likelihood of containment overnight or even Tuesday, according to reports from the scene.
Cal Fire air tankers and water-dropping helicopters were requested to conduct aerial fire attack operations beyond sunset.
At least one cabin was engulfed by flames, Bommarito said.
Two firefighters fell ill from heat exhaustion but were expected to be fine. Temperatures were hovering around 100, even at the higher elevations.
Bommarito noted that the area probably hasn’t burned since about 1980.
Precautionary evacuation orders were issued for the sparsely populated Holy Jim community and Trabuco Canyon area, home to dozens of weekend cabins. Also, Blue Jay Campground and El Cariso Campground, off of state Route 74 were evacuated.
The OCFA said residents in the Holy Jim area can call the fire hotline at (714) 628-7085 for updates.