Firefighters in Riverside County are working overtime to extinguish two separate wildfires that broke out on Sunday.
The first fire -dubbed the Hawarden Fire– started at 1:37 p.m. near Hawarden Drive in Riverside’s Alessandro Heights neighborhood.
As of 6 a.m. Monday, the blaze had spread to about 500 acres and was not contained. According to fire officials, at least three homes had been destroyed, and several others had been damaged.
Multiple fire departments, including crews from Hemet and Orange County, were called in to assist the Riverside Fire Department due to resources being deployed to the Eagle Fire in nearby Corona. Police were also seen going door to door, helping families get their pets and other belongings out of their homes.
Evacuation orders were in place for the following areas due to the Hawarden Fire:
- Eagle Crest Court
- Chartwell Drive
- Horace Street
- Hawarden Drive
- Berry Road and Via Vista towards Trautwein and Alessandro
An evacuation center has been set up at the Orange Terrace Community Center, located at 20010 Orange Terrace Parkway in Riverside.
Burning southwest of the Hawarden Fire near Corona is the larger Eagle Fire, which has scorched over 1,600 acres since it was first reported at 2:21 p.m. Sunday.
Officials said the Eagle Fire initially grew rapidly but was 50% contained as of 6 a.m. Monday.
Evacuation orders that were in place have since been downgraded to warnings for the following areas:
- North of Farley Avenue
- South of Cajalco Road
- East of Verdino Circle and Cajalco Road
- West of Cajalco Road
An evacuation center has been set up at Santiago High School, located at 1395 East Foothill Parkway in Corona.
More information on the Hawarden Fire can be found here. Click here for more information on the Eagle Fire.