The Springs Fire burning in Riverside County inched dangerously close to homes in the Moreno Valley Ranch neighborhood on Friday evening.
The Springs Fire burning in Riverside County, east of Moreno Valley and near Lake Perris, inched dangerously close to homes in the Moreno Valley Ranch neighborhood on Friday evening.
The over 4,000-acre brush fire first broke out around 11 a.m. and quickly spread due to strong Santa Ana winds.
An Eyewitness News crew watched as the flames crested the ridge in the hillside above the homes on Championship Drive. It appeared that most of the flames were at least 200 yards away from the homes around 5 p.m. Fortunately, the Santa Ana winds were beginning to die down as crews continued to make water and retardant drops on the brush fire.
Mandatory evacuation orders are in effect for thousands of homes, mainly around Lake Perris and the Rancho del Sol Golf Club.
"We always knew that if this area was to catch fire, it would be devastating, because just like the fires in the Palisades and everything else, this is exactly the same thing that we have here. This has been waiting to go off. Nobody wants to take care of it, so we're not going to wait around," said Moreno Valley resident Ray Moorehead.
The Kaiser Permanente Moreno Valley Medical Center is among the thousands of structures in the evacuation warning zones. Kaiser Permanente released a statement, saying it will remain open but is keeping "direct contact with Riverside County emergency services as the situation evolves."
"We have strong emergency response contingency plans in place to ensure our members continue receiving the highquality care they deserve," the statement read, in part. "Some nonurgent appointments at the Moreno Valley Medical Center campus, including the Iris Medical Office Building, may need to be rescheduled, and we will contact members directly if their appointments are affected."
At last check, the Springs Fire was 4,176 acres and 5% contained, according to CAL FIRE.