News & Columns > RIMOFTHEWORLD.net > Mop Up Continues On 30 Acre Squints Ranch Fire

Mop Up Continues On 30 Acre Squints Ranch Fire

By RIMOFTHEWORLD.net
Monday, June 18, 2007

A late afternoon fire sent firefighters and aircraft scrambling to an area of mostly grass and chaparral about 3 miles to the east of Lake Arrowhead late Monday afternoon. The so-called Rouse Meadows Fire was first reported shortly after 6 PM Monday, according to U.S. Forest Service Public Affairs Officer John Miller. The fire was fully contained by midnight.

By the time firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service, San Bernardino County, and CalFire (formerly known as the CDF, or California Department of Forestry) gained accessed the fire it had grown to about five acres. The San Bernardino County helicopter, 40-King, was on scene relaying location information to responding fire personnel, placing the fire near Squints Ranch Road and Rouse Ranch Road. Flight operations crews setup flight paths for inbound air tankers.

The fire consumed about 30 acres before it was contained. At one point in the planning, fire officials also discussed using the runway at Squints Ranch to drop off personnel and equipment. About 130 firefighters worked throughout the evening in the rugged Front County, ferrying in people, equipment, and water to the scene. Aircraft were able to make multiple attacks on the blaze before nightfall. Planes dropped their last retardant for the day on Monday shortly after 8 PM.

The cause of the fire is under investigation but there are some reports that is started in a wood deck. Firefighters are expected to continue mop up operations on Tuesday as temperatures reach to near 90 degrees with low humidity and light southerly breezes. A few hot spots may flare up inside the fire perimeter.