The Fairview Fire continues to burn a path of destruction through Riverside County, exploding to 19,377 acres as of Thursday morning – nearly doubling in size in just a matter of hours.
At 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, the blaze was only 9,846 acres.
Containment remains at just 5% despite the work of hundreds of firefighters who are contending with intense flames, heavy smoke, and oppressively hot temperatures.
Officials have issued additional evacuation orders and warnings.
Evacuation Orders:
- South of Cactus Valley Road, north of Minto Way, north of Red Mountain Road, east of Sage Road and west of the U.S. Forest Service boundary
- West of Wilson Way, south of Highway 74, east of Fairview Avenue and north of Stetson
- South of Stetson Avenue, north of Cactus Valley Road, west of Bautista Canyon and east of State Street
Evacuation Warnings:
- West of Fairview, south of Highway 74, north of Stetson, east of Soboba Street
- East of Fairview, north of Highway 74, south of San Jacinto River bed, east of Wilson Way
- East of Red Mountain Road and the Cahuilla Mountain U.S. Forest Service boundary
- South of Minto Way, south of Red Mountain Road, west of Stanley Road, north of Stanley Road and east of Sage Road
Despite the evacuation orders, many have chosen to “shelter in place” rather than evacuate, officials said.
“We have gone to over 3,700 homes to make notifications, and I would say that maybe a quarter of those people are actually leaving,” Riverside County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Brandi Swan said during a Wednesday news conference.
“There are a lot of residents out there who are choosing to stay,” Captain Richard Cordova from Cal Fire told KTLA. “Unfortunately, we can’t go in there and physically remove them, but once they are out we can keep them out. I just wish people would adhere to that evacuation order because its for (their) safety.”
An evacuation center was established at Tahquitz High School located at 4425 Titan Trail in Hemet.
Click here for an interactive evacuations map
The fire erupted Monday afternoon near Fairview Avenue and Bautista Canyon Road and rapidly consumed hundreds of acres of brush and several homes. Officially, only seven structures have been lost to the fire but that number is expected to climb.
On Wednesday, authorities confirmed that flames overcame two people who died in the fire in their vehicle as they tried to escape Monday afternoon.
A third victim, described only as an adult female, was found outside the vehicle with severe burns. She was transported to a hospital and is expected to survive.
Officials believe all three victims were related.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Southern California Edison reported circuit activity at about the time the first flames were spotted but it is still unclear if the utility’s equipment played a role in sparking the blaze.
Movalee Carberry, who evacuated due to the fire, said her home experienced a “power surge” shortly before the blaze.
“I was in the house, lights went out a couple seconds, came back on. We all looked at each other and said, ‘That was a power surge.’ We go outside a little while later and my daughter-in-law, she says, ‘We’ve got fire,'” Carberry said.
Smoke advisories have been extended through Thursday.