1,000 Fight Out-of-Control Blaze in Cleveland Forest : 2-County Fire Chars 3,500 Acres

More than 1,000 firefighters from throughout California, Oregon and Washington were battling a 3,500-acre brush fire that continued to rage out of control in the Cleveland National Forest this morning near the Orange-Riverside county border.

By mid-morning, a U.S. Forestry Service spokesman said that the speed of the blaze had slowed substantially and that the fire had been 30% contained.

Because conditions in the area are the driest in 30 years, however, officials said they have brought in an extraordinary number of firefighters to attack the blaze from the air and ground.

“We’re ready for a battle,” Tom Horner, U.S. Forestry Service spokesman, said this morning.

The cause of the fire, which erupted about 4 p.m. Tuesday near the Upper San Juan campground 15 miles east of Interstate 5, had not been determined, Horner added.

Ortega Highway, the primary link between south Orange County and Lake Elsinore in Riverside County, has been closed since the fire broke out, meaning long detours for commuters. The California Highway Patrol said this morning that, even if the fire is contained today, the highway will remain closed between Caspers Regional Park and Grand Avenue in Lake Elsinore for at least two days to repair fire damage.

Residents Evacuated

Residents--officials said they did not know how many--were evacuated as the blaze threatened up to 100 homes in the area. However, none of the 125 buildings dotting the remote canyons and hills in the area were damaged.

The American Red Cross opened two evacuation centers in the Lake Elsinore area--one at Lake Elsinore High School--but they were virtually empty.

Two firefighters were injured at the edge of the blaze. One hurt his back and was taken by helicopter to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo. The other suffered a minor foot injury, officials said.

Five fire crews of the U.S. Forest Service were flying in from Washington and Oregon and were expected by this afternoon.

Despite today’s temperatures in the 70s, and only light 7 m.p.h. winds plus 40% humidity, the three-year drought has handicapped efforts to extinguish the blaze.

Amateur radio operators were helping monitor radio traffic because access to the area is difficult and scores of volunteers helped by dishing out food to the firemen and emergency workers.

Thomas Becher and Ted Johnson contributed to this story.