The Line Fire, burning in the San Bernardino National Forest has consumed over 37,000 acres and is now 18% contained.
Authorities expect today’s cooler to moderate fire growth.
Damage inspection teams will be working to identify damaged and destroyed structures today.
And the national Guard will continue to support firefighting efforts. 80 soldiers who were trained Wednesday at Camp Roberts are expected to support Cal Fire’s efforts today, forming four 20-person hand crews.
KVCR spoke with Betsy Miller with the San Bernardino Valley Water Conservation District, to get an idea of how wildfires can impact our water supply.
Miller:
The ash and debris from these fires absolutely degrades the water quality that’s in our streams and rivers, and that affects the ability of the treatment plans to clean and deliver that water for potable use. So, thankfully, local cities like Redlands, and water agencies, like East Valley Water District, in Highland all proactively monitor our water quality. And they switched over to water from our aquifer, and water that’s imported into our region from the State Water Project at the onset of the fire, in order to ensure the safe, uninterrupted water delivery for the homes and businesses in our community.
Miller added that it’s been encouraging to see the coordination between water agencies behind the scenes.
Miller:
I’m seeing it in the water districts, and I know other folks are seeing it in their sectors as well. One example is, in order to provide additional water for the water dropping helicopters, the conservation district has been coordinating with the city of Redlands, to use surface water, that they’re not using right now, and also with the San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District, to provide water from the state water project for firefighting efforts as well.
For KVCR News, I’m Jessica Greenwell