The FireWXPhoto Blog

Welcome to my Blog. I am an Emergency Incident and weather photographer located in Southern California. I am also a member of the Emergency Photographers Network. Feel free to leave comments and enjoy your stay at the FireWXPhoto Blog. Be sure to check out my website at www.FireWXPhoto.com where you will find my photo galleries. If you have comments or questions, send me an email.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

CALFIRE RRU - Silver Fire - 8-7-13

The Silver Fire started near Hwy 243 and Poppet Flats Rd. The fire burned 20,292 acres before being contained. 48 structures were destroyed and there were 8 injuries.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

Redlands Fire - Structure - 8-6-13

Redlands Firefighters battled a structure fire at a single-family residence in the 800 block of Merced Street Tuesday night. No one was injured in the blaze, which was contained primarily to the garage.

The fire was reported shortly after 10 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 6, when a resident went into the garage of the single-story structure and discovered heavy smoke. She alerted her husband and children and all residents escaped along with the family’s two dogs. Two cats are unaccounted for.
A total of five engines, a medic squad, a truck company, two chief officers and a Fire Department chaplain – 21 personnel – responded to the blaze along with police and Citizen Volunteer Patrol who assisted with traffic control. At one point the flames were visible from Mentone.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Banning Pass Lightning - 7-21-13

Here are a few shots from the lightning storm that came thru the Banning Pass this morning about 3:30 am.

Photos by EPN564




CALFIRE RRU - Brush Fire - Redlands IC - 7-16-13

 A brush fire that burned about 150 acres north of Redlands Boulevard in the San Timoteo Canyon area north of Moreno Valley was declared 100 percent contained Wednesday, July 17. The fire, which was reported at 5:48 p.m. Tuesday, drew nearly 150 firefighters to the scene, along with a helicopter and two air tankers. It was declared contained at 6 a.m. today, and all roads in the area were open, Riverside County Cal Fire reported. Cause of the blaze, dubbed the Redlands Fire, was under investigation. No injuries or structure losses were reported.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN564

CALFIRE - RRU- Brush Fire - 7-15-13

 The Mountain Fire near Idyllwild was declared 49 percent contained Saturday evening and its burned area was still estimated at 27,245 acres, more than 42 square miles, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

There were 3,347 personnel assigned to the fire as of Saturday evening.

An evacuation warning remained in place for Pine Cove, and mandatory evacuation orders remained in place for Idyllwild and Fern Valley, according to the Forest Service and Riverside County sheriff's officials.

 More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN564

Monday, July 1, 2013

CALFIRE BDU - Structure - Sweetwater Incident - 7-1-13

(Highland Community News)  Firefighters battle a Sunday night fire at 7638 Sweetwater Lane in Highland. Battalion Chief Jesse Estrrada reports that the fire apparently started in the garage and spread to the second floor of the home, causing  $75,000 to $80,000 damage. No injuries were reported; the cause is still under investigation, he said. The house was red tagged until code enforcement officers can inspect it for safety. Fire department units from Redlands, San Manuel and San Bernardino responded to help out.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

Saturday, June 29, 2013

CALFIRE BDU - Brush Fire - Mill Fire - 6-28-13

(SB Sun) Three fires broke out within two hours in the Inland Empire Friday afternoon.
The largest, a fast-moving blaze called the Mill Fire, burned 350 acres along Highway 38 near the Mentone-Yucaipa border. People in two areas of Yucaipa were evacuated to St. Francis Catholic Church, 12687 California St. Pat Henry only had enough time to grab her dog and a handbag before being taken to the church by her caregiver, she said. "I have never had to be evacuated before, and I have been there for 16 years," Henry said. "It was kind of exciting when the Sheriff pulled up and said we had to leave."
Large animals were being taken to Yucaipa Regional Park.The brush fire -- first reported around 2:15 p.m. -- quickly spread along a hillside, coming within yards of a house. "It got close to us, the streets above were evacuated," resident Terri Patterson posted on Facebook. "We could see 40-foot flames behind the houses. It came very close to one house but (an airplane) knocked it down ... "Three hours after the initial call, Cal Fire spokesman Bill Peters said a lot of the heavy fire was out, but many hot spots remained. Zero percent of the fire was contained at that point, he said.Preston Fouts, an arson investigator for Cal Fire, said the fire's cause was under investigation. It started just east of 5000 Highway 38, he added. The highway was closed between Garnet and Bryant streets as several agencies battled the flames on the ground and from the sky with helicopters and airplanes.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564


Sunday, June 23, 2013

CALFIRE - BDU - Yucaipa - Park IC - 6-23-13

A 5 acre brush fire in the Yucaipa Regional Park this afternoon. CALFIRE units along with aircraft brought the blaze under control quickly.

Photos by EPN-564



Colton Fire - Commercial Fire - Valley IC - 6-20-13

Firefighters battled a two alarm structure fire at 2042 Valley Boulevard Thursday evening in Colton. The blaze started around 6:45 p.m. and no injuries was reported, said Colton Fire Captain Tom Debellis. The cause is still under investigation by the Colton Fire Department. Crews from San Bernardino County Fire and Rialto Fire Department also responded to the fire.

Photos by EPN-564






Los Angeles County Fire - Commercial Structure - Juniper IC - 6-15-13

A two-alarm fire erupted at a commercial building in the Florence-Firestone area of Los Angeles Saturday. The fire broke out at a building at the intersection of 92nd and Juniper streets around 3:30 a.m. Officials said it took a team of about 80 firefighters about 40 minutes to knock the fire down. The commercial building belongs to a company named Verco which make refrigeration and store fixtures. Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Brian Jordan said their main concerns were the possibity of the roof collapsing and hot spots flaring up. "We're using thermal imagers to find all the hot spots in the building and we have thermal imagers on our engines," said Jordan. "Once we find the hot spots, again that's the area thats collapsed, we're going to be very, very safe accessing those hot spots. We have a skip loader en route that's going to help us remove that very heavy material." No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

San Bernardino National Forest - Hathaway Fire - 6-10-13

A few shots of the helitankers filling for the Hathaway.

Photos by EPN-564





San Bernardino City Fire - Little Mountain Brush Fire - 6-8-13

San Bernardino City Fire, multiple alarm fir on Little Mountain, Burned approximately 30 acres. No homes were burned.

Photos by EPN-564



CALFIRE - BDU - Structure - Highland - Red IC - 6-6-13

An early morning fire caused major damage to a home in the 7400 block of Red Clover Way in Highland Thursday, June 6. Battalion Chief Jesse Estrada says the fire was accidental and the lone occupant escaped without injury. Fire units from Redlands, San Manuel and San Bernardino responded to assist Highland firefighters battle the 3 a.m. blaze. 

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564
 

Detroit City Fire Department - 5-13

I took a trip to Detroit to get some photos of the DFD in action. During the week I was there I went to more than 50 fires, not all were boomers of course, but I did manage to catch a few that were burning. More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photos by EPN-564



Redlands Fire - Haz-mat/Traffic - 5-9-13

Westbound Interstate 10, closed since 2:30 a.m. Thursday, May 9, when a big rig overturned and spilled fuel across the freeway, has reopened. Caltrans announced on Twitter that all lanes were open at 9:50 a.m. The eastbound lanes reopened at 7 a.m. The crash, which occurred near Mountain Avenue, stopped traffic on the freeway for miles, and clogged side streets as commuters tried to find alternate routes. Redlands firefighters and the California Highway Patrol responded to the scene. Crews used a crane to lift the big rig and towed it away.

Photos by EPN-564




RRU - Banning - Brush Fire - 5-1-13

The Summit Fire burning near Banning was fully contained at 1,366 acres, fire officials said Saturday. This fire has claimed one home. Two people were injured, but there was no word on if the injured individuals were firefighters or residents of the home that burned down. All evacuations in the area have been lifted. FEMA is now considering the Summit Fire a major disaster. The federal government will cover about 75 percent of firefighting costs. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

Redlands - Apartment Fire - 4-21-13 Paloma IC

 (RDF) REDLANDS -- A fire displaced a woman from her Redlands apartment Sunday afternoon, Redlands Fire Department officials said. Redlands firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze, which was reported shortly before 2:40 p.m. at a second-floor apartment in the 300 block of La Paloma Street, officials said. Firefighters aggressively attacked the fire as initial reports from someone at the scene indicated someone may have been trapped inside the burning building, officials said. When firefighters arrived, they didn't locate anyone inside the apartment. Within 20 minutes of the fire being reported, firefighters were working on extinguishing hot spots that remained in the home. Firefighters were seen on top of the blue and grey building, carefully watching where they stepped as smoke continued to escaped from the building. Fire officials on scene did not know if the woman living in the building was inside when the fire erupted. Its cause was still under investigation.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

San Bernardino County Fire - Structure - 4-3-13 Hill Incident

(Inland Daily Bulletin) A fire damaged a mobile home in Mentone Saturday evening.
San Bernardino County firefighters responded at 8 p.m. to a fire at the Friendly Hills Mobile Home Park at 2140 Mentone Boulevard. When they arrived, they found smoke coming from inside the structure, a fire official said. The blaze was under control by 8:27 p.m. No injuries were reported.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

Redlands Fire - Trailer Fire - 3-31-13

Redlands Fire handles a trailer fire on the WB I-10.

Photos by EPN-564



Colton Fire Department - Apartment Fire - 3-31-13

(PE.com)Sixteen families were left homeless when a fire badly damaged eight Colton apartments and filled eight others with smoke, city fire officials said. The flames were reported at 11:58 p.m. Saturday, March 30, in a 16-unit apartment building at 1315 Meadow Lane. Paramedics checked one person for smoke inhalation, but no hospitalization was required. The fire began in a second-story apartment and climbed into the attic, where it spread to three additional apartments, Engineer Tom DeBellis said. Three first-floor units also were badly damaged. “There was smoke throughout all (16) of the apartments,” DeBellis said. Fire crews from San Bernardino County and the cities of San Bernardino, Redlands and Loma Linda helped battle the flames, which were extinguished in about 45 minutes. American Red Cross volunteers were summoned to find temporary housing and other help for the displaced residents. The cause of the fire and a damage estimate hadn’t been determined by Sunday evening.

More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

San Bernardino National Forest - Vegetation Fire - 3-21-13

(SB Sun)SAN BERNARDINO - Police officers arrested a 27-year-old man seen running from the Waterman Canyon area for allegedly setting five fires along Highway 18 near Waterman Canyon Road Thursday afternoon. Jaried Escobedo, of San Bernardino, was taken into custody after he was spotted trying to run uphill from the fire scene Thursday, according to authorities. Escobedo reportedly noticed San Bernardino police officers waiting for him at the top of the ridge, tried to run back down the hillside, lost his footing and took a tumble, officials said. He was initially held on an unrelated warrant, but following an investigation by the San Bernardino City Fire Department, was later booked on suspicion of arson, booking records show. Firefighters extinguished five small brush fires, which burned a total of 1 acre in Waterman Canyon, according to San Bernardino National Forest officials. The first fire ignited shortly before 3 p.m. near Highway 18 and lower Old Waterman Canyon Road, according to the California Highway Patrol website, prompting a closure of Old Waterman Canyon Road. Witnesses and some fire personnel reported seeing a man wearing a blue polo shirt and jeans trying to flee the area, according to reports.

Photos by EPN-564



Redlands Fire - Structure - 3-18-13

Redlands Fire handles a chimney fire.

Photos by EPN-564


Redlands Fire - Vehicle Fire - 3-16-13

Redlands Fire Department extinguishes a vehicle fire on the EB I-10. More photos can be seen here in the gallery section of FireWXPhoto.com.

Photo by EPN-564

LAFD - Traffic - 3-8-13

LAFD - Traffic - Manchester at Halldale

Photos by EPN-564