• 

  Lori Davis, bottom left, touches a plaque dedicated to the 58 concertgoers who died at the Route 91 mass shooting in Las Vegas last Oct. Her son Austin Davis, a Corona resident, was one of the victims. More than 200 gather at Eagle Glen Park where “Remembrance Field” which was dedicated to the shooting victims. Four victims lived, worked or played sports. Photographed in Corona, Calif. on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Samantha Stoudt of Corona reacts to a revealed image of Christopher Roybal, 28, a Navy combat veteran who died in the Las Vegas shooting just a few days short of his birthday. Stoudt is the best friend of Roybal’s wife. More than 200 gather at Eagle Glen Park honoring the Las Vegas mass shooting victims where a baseball field and plaque memorialize the 58 concertgoers who died. Four victims lived, worked or played sports, Photographed in Corona, Calif. on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  An image of Corona resident Thomas Day Jr. was unveiled during a ceremony dedicating the baseball field at Eagle Glen Park as Remembrance Field. More than 200 gather at the Corona, Calif. park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018 honoring the Las Vegas mass shooting victims. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Diane Day, is between her son Thomas Day Jr., left, and Austin Davis during a dedicated to the 58 concertgoers who died at the Route 91 mass shooting in Las Vegas last Oct. More than 200 gather at Eagle Glen Park where Remembrance Field which was dedicated to the shooting victims. Four victims, including Day and Davis, lived, worked or played sports in Corona, Calif. Photographed on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Diane Day, right #32, and family embrace after a Remembrance Field dedication at Eagle Glen Park in Corona, Calif. on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. Her son Thomas Day Jr. died at the Route 91 mass shooting in Las Vegas last Oct. Photographed (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Dixie Roybal of Corona says husband Christopher will “always be the love of her life” He was deployed in Afghanistan from 2011-2012 as a dog handler and loved to sing karaoke. The Navy combat veteran died in the Las Vegas shooting just a few days short of his 29th birthday. More than 200 gather at Eagle Glen Park honoring the Las Vegas mass shooting victims where a baseball field and plaque memorialize the 58 concertgoers who died at the Route 91 mass shooting in Las Vegas. Four victims lived, worked or played sports. Photographed in Corona, Calif. on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  More than 200 gather at Eagle Glen Park where Remembrance Field was dedicated to the Las Vegas shooting victims. Four victims lived worked or played sports in Corona, Calif. Photographed on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Dixie Roybal of Corona lost her husband Christopher in the Las Vegas shooting. They had just gotten married in 2016. More than 200 gather at Eagle Glen Park honoring the Las Vegas mass shooting victims where a baseball field and plaque memorialize the 58 concertgoers who died at the Route 91 mass shooting in Las Vegas. Four victims lived, worked or played sports. Photographed in Corona, Calif. on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Kim Mermer of Lake Elsinore, from left, and Samantha Stoudt of Corona console friend Dixie Roybal of Corona whose husband Christopher died in the Las Vegas mass shooting. Corona dedicates Remembrance Field to victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Kleenex was given out and used when Corona dedicates Remembrance Field to victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Annette Morris of Newport Beach, left, embraces cousin Whitney Day of Corona whose dad Thomas Day, Jr. died in the Las Vegas mass shooting. Corona, Calif. dedicates Remembrance Field to victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Gary Davis, dad of Austin Davis, left, wipes a tear as Corona, Calif. dedicates Remembrance Field to victims, including his son who died in the Las Vegas shooting, at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Survivors of the Las Vegas mass shooting pose with a country strong poster. Corona, Calif. dedicates Remembrance Field to victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  The National Anthem is sung as Corona, Calif. dedicates Remembrance Field to Las Vegas shooting victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Corona, Calif. residents Samantha Stoudt, left, and best friend Dixie Roybal remember Dixie’s husband Christopher who died in the Las Vegas shooting. Corona dedicates Remembrance Field to Las Vegas shooting victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  “Tommy (Thomas Day Jr.), picture, treated everyone the same whether you were the mayor or the person sweeping the street,” says former co-worker Mike Woodhart of Dove Canyon. Day’s daughter Candice Day of Corona shows media a tattoo of her dad. More than 200 gather at the Corona, Calif. park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018 honoring the Las Vegas mass shooting victims. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Three days after the Las Vegas shooting Rick Hood of Lake Elsinore honored his friends Austin Davis and Thomas Day Jr. with a tattoo. “Thomas and Austin’s bromance was started on this very baseball field (Eagle Glen Park) years ago,” Stacey Davis, Austin’s aunt, says. It’s now dedicated asÊRemembrance Field. More than 200 gather at the Corona, Calif. park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Kim Mermer of Lake Elsinore, with image of her friend Christopher Roybal of Corona who died in the Las Vegas mass shooting. Corona, Calif. dedicates Remembrance Field to victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Corona, Calif. dedicates Remembrance Field to victims at Eagle Glen Park on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. Three images of Corona residents are under the black cloth. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

They came together to remember. Nearly a year after 58 music fans were killed by a gunman at a Las Vegas country music festival, Corona on Sunday, Sept. 30, honored the victims — including four with ties to the city.

A morning ceremony dedicated the baseball field at Eagle Glen Park as Remembrance Field. A plaque was unveiled to salute victims of the Oct. 1, 2017, attack and name the locals who died.

Austin Davis, Thomas Day Jr., Patricia Mestas and Christopher Roybal worked, lived or played sports in Corona and some of their family members attended the ceremony.

The LA County Fair kicks off Friday, Aug. 31, but we’ll be showing off the latest treats around 10:30 a.m Wednesday.

This year’s theme is the Route 66-inspired “Get Your Kicks…at the LA County Fair.”

In spirit of the fair’s theme, vendors will offer at least one food for $6.60. Chicken Charlie’s will sell a waffle cone stuffed with mac and cheese and topped with buffalo chicken. With a drink, the meal will cost $6.60.

Some of last year’s most eye-popping fair foods included a sandwich with fried chicken and ice cream between two halves of a Krispy Kreme doughnut, jackfruit tacos and brisket waffle fries.

Follow socalnewsgroup on Instagram.

Geoff Pemberton, a Riverside County Fire Department division chief, shared the latest facts about the fire including that about 1,300 personnel are still involved in firefighting efforts. He also refused to refer to the arson suspect Forrest Gordon Clark by name.

“I don’t want to give him that gratitude for the devastation we are all experiencing,” he said.

After Pemberton finished his presentation, everyone in the room clapped and gave him a standing ovation.

More than 30 residents attending the meeting at Lake Elsinore Cultural Center. A handful spoke during public comments to comment on the blaze.

In council comments, Mayor Pro Tem Steve Manos said he received a call last week from a former Lake Elsinore resident living in Idaho who offered to drive more than 12 hours to bring a horse trailer for evacuees.

“This community really did pull it together,” Manos said.

Councilman Daryl Hickman thanked Pemberton and his staff.

“You guys did a phenomenal job,” he said. “We’re extremely proud of you.”

The council also adopted a resolution 5-0 formally proclaiming a local emergency, which paves the way for the city to potentially get reimbursed for some of the fire-related costs it incurred over the last week. Staff overtime and cleanup costs are examples of costs that can be repaid, said Nicole Dailey, assistant to the city manager.

Much of the council came together Thursday, Aug. 9, when members appeared at a community meeting to update residents on firefighting efforts. Mayor Natasha Johnson was unable to attend because her family had to evacuate.

The nearly 23,000-acre blaze, which was 64 percent contained as of Tuesday evening, led to thousands leaving their homes in the fire zone including neighborhoods in the Lake Elsinore and Corona areas.  At times last week the flames got within hundreds of feet of some homes.

The fire caused all 24 schools in the Lake Elsinore Unified School District to delay the first day of school from Monday, Aug. 13, to Monday, Aug. 20. Some Corona-Norco Unified schools also pushed back the first day of school to Aug. 20.

Faced with six felony charges including arson and making criminal threats in connection with the Holy fire, Clark, 51, appeared in court Friday, Aug. 10, and called the charges against him a “lie.”

Clark, who owns a cabin in the Holy Jim community in Orange County near where the fire broke out, refused to leave his jail cell a day earlier. An arraignment and a bail review hearing.has been set for Friday, Aug. 17.

Four of the victims — Austin Davis, Thomas Day Jr., Patricia Mestas and Christopher Roybal — lived, worked or played sports in Corona. Fifty-four others who attended the Route 91 Harvest country music festival Sunday, Oct. 1, were killed when a gunman opened fire from a nearby hotel. Hundreds more were injured.

If approved, the baseball field at Eagle Glen Park will be named “Remembrance Field.” A plaque will honor all Route 91 victims and name the four locals.

Kelsey-Lee Day, whose father played in the city’s recreational softball league at Eagle Glen Park for years, said a dedication and plaque would mean a lot to her family.

“It’s somewhere where we go a lot,” she said.

Kelsey-Lee Day and her sister, Whitney Day, played on the same co-ed team with their dad. One of her favorite memories is when the three of them turned a double play about two years ago.

“He would always make the most outstanding plays,” she said.

The size, location and design of the plaque will be decided at a later time. Community donations are needed to build and install the memorial plaque.

David Montgomery-Scott, library and recreation services director, said the remembrance concept came up when a friend of Day and Davis approached the city about its honorary naming policy.

City staff members ended up considering a plan to possibly call the baseball diamond “Remembrance Field” and install a memorial plaque at the park, located west of the 15 Freeway near Eagle Glen Parkway.

The park or field cannot be named after Day or David since the city’s honorary naming policy requires individuals be deceased for more than five years, according to the city.

If the council approves the resolution, residents can begin working with the city to pay for the costs of designing and building a plaque.

IF YOU GO

What: The Corona City Council could approve a resolution to honor Route 91 Harvest festival victims by dedicating a field and installing a plaque at Eagle Glen Park.

When: 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 15

Where: City Hall, 400 S. Vicentia Ave.

The blaze, which has scorched more than 18,000 acres, has prompted thousands to leave their homes near Corona and Lake Elsinore. The fire was 5 percent contained as of Friday morning.

• The Red Cross is accepting donations. Donors can visit redcross.org or text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation for disaster relief. For those who want to donate to a specific cause, the Red Cross urges residents to write the disaster name in the memo line of a check. They can be mailed to American Red Cross, 601 N. Golden Circle Drive, Santa Ana, CA 92705.

The best way to help right now is by making a gift to Red Cross Disaster Relief. You can visit https://t.co/r4vzrWlgQq to donate. It’s these donations to Disaster Relief, that we receive year-round, that enable us to be equipped for disasters like the Holy Fire when they strike.

— Red Cross DTS (@RedCrossDTS) August 9, 2018

• LAKE ELSINORE: The city is only accepting the following items at the Public Works Corporation Yard, 521 N. Langstaff St.

• Non-perishable (canned or dried) food. Please include a hand-operated can opener or two with your donation.
• Personal-care items (soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, combs, hairbrushes, shampoo, feminine care products, etc.)
• Chapstick
• Bandannas
• Work gloves
• High-energy food and drinks
• Water

Residents should not donate money, used or new clothing, perishable food or broken items, according to the city.

• The Lake Elsinore Storm baseball team is accepting the following items. The team said it has plenty of water, Gatorade and snacks. Items can be dropped off at The Diamond, 500 Diamond Drive.

#HolyFire pic.twitter.com/uXzH25YAeS

— Lake Elsinore Storm (@Storm_Baseball) August 10, 2018

• NORCO: Items such as lip balm, eye drops and lotion at several locations in Norco. Three donation sites will be open until 4:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 10. Two will accept donations until noon Saturday, Aug. 11.

• Keller Williams Realty: 3646 Hamner Ave.
• J&M Towing: 3304 Hamner Ave.
• T&T Welding: 1525 Hamner Ave.

Donations are currently being accepted by private organizers for those fighting the #HolyFire. pic.twitter.com/9nfB8cETd9

— Corona Chamber (@Corona_Chamber) August 10, 2018

• CORONA: The Robert and Christy Real Estate Team is accepting bottled water, sports drinks and snacks, preferably trail mix, for firefighters. Donations will be accepted through 5 p.m. Friday at 4160 Temescal Canyon Road, Suite 500.

• Facebook has a “Community Help” feature where users can ask for or give help related to the fire. More than 160 users offered help to displaced residents as of 11 a.m. Friday.

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Check back for updates.

*****

Calmer winds Friday helped to slow the spread of the destructive Cranston fire near Idyllwild as crews more than tripled containment of the blaze that authorities believe was sparked by an arsonist.

The fire had burned through 12,300 acres from the time it ignited around midday Wednesday through 7:30 p.m. Friday, U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Lyn Sieliet said. Containment was at 16 percent, a sharp rise from the 5 percent reported earlier in the day.

The progress, Sieliet said, was due in part to gentler winds — 1 to 2 mph instead of 3 to 4 mph with gusts to 16 mph — and a shift in where the fire was burning to flatter terrain. Flames move more swiftly uphill, and there were fewer of those runs Friday.

“I know with the progress that we made today, they are a little more optimistic,” she said. “We hope we have the same type of weather (Saturday).”

Despite improvement in some weather conditions, crews again battled scorching temperatures Friday. And little relief from the heat was in sight for the weekend, as officials braced for hot and dry conditions and westerly winds during the afternoon.

Still, crews already have begun rehabilitation work in the Mountain Center area, removing dead vegetation and other items that were damaged and repairing areas where bulldozers upended the ground.

“We’re trying to put it back to a natural state,” Sieliet said.

Still protecting homes

The flames did not push into the Pine Cove area late Thursday as officials feared. Crews on Friday night into Saturday will remove debris from along the roadside and cut some limbs and grasses in Pine Cove, Apple Canyon and other populated areas to prevent flames from intruding.

Flames did continue to spread in a southeast direction toward a federal wilderness area and Lake Hemet.

The good news extended to the restoration of power for some people.

Whereas thousands of Southern California Edison customers were without power in the fire area because of damaged equipment, only about 200 lacked electricity Friday evening, Edison spokesman Ron Gales said. But there was still no estimate as to when the 5,200 Anza Electric Cooperative customers would get the lights back on. Those customers depend on electricity from Edison.

Crews will be on the mountain throughout the weekend making repairs, Gales said.

Arson suspect charged

Meanwhile Friday, Temecula resident Brandon N. McGlover pleaded not guilty to 15 felony charges alleging he set the Cranston fire and eight other blazes. He could face life in prison if convicted as charged.

Two of the charges — five counts of arson of a structure and one count of aggravated arson — were directly tied to the Cranston fire, which has burned at least five homes. Assessment teams are trying to determine if any additional homes have been damaged, which could lead to more charges.

McGlover, 32, who was arrested at midday Wednesday, was also accused of setting fires in Idyllwild, Anza and Sage.

There were no immediate plans to lift current evacuation orders, with officials describing the blaze as still very active and dynamic. Almost 5,000 structures remained threatened, and 7,000 people had been evacuated.

The Forest Service on Friday announced that lands within the San Jacinto Ranger District and Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains national monuments would be closed through Aug. 28, depending on conditions. The order prohibits going on National Forest lands, trails and roads. It does not include private lands, including communities and Indian reservations.

The fire’s severity prompted Gov. Jerry Brown to declare a state of emergency for the Riverside County area.

Some mountain communities were under mandatory evacuations:

• Apple Canyon
• Cedar Glen
• Camp Scherman Girl Scout Camp
• Fern Valley
• Hurkey Creek
• Idyllwild
• Garner Valley
• Mountain Center
• Mt. San Jacinto State Park
• Pine Cove

Residents of Paradise Corner were warned that evacuations might be coming.

Despite the orders, some people in the small towns that dot the San Jacinto mountains have so far decided to remain.

RELATED: This map shows where the Cranston, Ribbon fires are burning near Idyllwild

“We came back to see what we can do and how to help,” said Tyla Friemoth, 22.

Her family owns the Idyllwild Chevron gas station, and on Wednesday night and all Thursday she and her family opened the doors to provide firefighters and residents fuel, snacks and other amenities.

Authorities said decisions to issue evacuation orders are done with the safety of residents and firefighters in mind.

“This has been such a dynamic and unpredictable fire, and we don’t want to wait until the last minute (to order the evacuation),” said Lee Beyer with the U.S. Forest Service.

For many of the small towns – including Idyllwild and Pine Cove — Highway 243 is one of the only ways in or out.

“Having a large number of people trying to get out and we’re trying to get in can make for a very dangerous situation,” Beyer said.

Friday morning, Congressman Raul Ruiz, D-La Quinta, attended a briefing and toured portions of the burned area. Ruiz planned to visit families forced to leave their homes who are now staying at a Banning evacuation center.

Ruiz, during a visit the fire command center, said he was struck by how fast the fire grew.

The congressman noted that 4,100 homes have been evacuated, with an estimated 6,500 people displaced. Five to 11 buildings had burned, but it wasn’t known if they were homes or another type of structure.

Ruiz said he is pleased with the response by fire officials.

“I’m very glad to see these fine men and women are professionals; they are highly skilled, highly trained,” Ruiz said. “They are doing their job and working together in a unified manner.”

In Mountain Center, near Highway 74, the burned-out remains of what appeared to be two structures, as well as a van, were visible on Friday. A home about 1,000 feet away had been saved, but the two structures ravaged by flames were burned to the ground. It wasn’t clear what they had been, although a washer and a dryer were among the remains.

In Deer Foot, on the Southernmost point of Idyllwild, what appeared to be two more structures were severely burned. No one had returned to the area, since the evacuation orders were still in effect.

Off Glen Road, Idyllwild resident Mike Crouch stood in a tank top and shorts, watching from his home as planes dropped fire retardant on flames near a ridge. Crouch said he has been at the home for the past two days, as the fire burned.

“I don’t feel immediately threatened so I’d rather protect my property,” he said. He has his car ready in case the fire gets too close. “Once you leave,” he said, “you’re not coming back.”

FULL COVERAGE: Read all the latest from the Cranston Fire

The fire has led to the closure of several recreational areas and trails, including the Desert View Trail, the Little Round Valley Campground and the Long Valley Trail in Mt. San Jacinto State Park; and the Dark Canyon and the Deer Springs campgrounds and the Deer Springs Trail to Suicide Rock 3E17 to 3E33, and the Devil’s Slide Trail in the San Bernardino National Forest.

Highway 243 is closed from Banning to Highway 74, with residents north of Marion Ridge Drive with ID able to enter at Banning. Highway 74 is closed from Borco Street in Hemet to Highway 371.

Friday morning, in addition to the more than 1,300 fire personnel on scene, there 194 water tenders, five helicopters, nine airplanes and 17 bulldozers working to calm the Cranston fire. Three firefighter injuries had been reported, all believed to be minor.

Among those battling the blaze were firefighters from Compton, Huntington Beach and San Francisco.

Also Friday, state Attorney General Xavier Becerra warned merchants against price gouging. State law generally prohibits charging a price that exceeds, by more than 10 percent, the price that existed before a state or local emergency declaration was declared. The law applies to those who sell food, emergency supplies, medical supplies, building materials and gasoline.

Please check back for updates. This is a developing story.

With officials warning residents to leave as the fast-moving blaze spread, the Menifee boy and seven friends piled into the back of a Chevy Silverado on Wednesday with Pastor Tim Stroup of Palmdale’s Crosswind Community Church behind the wheel. In all, 16 kids from the church camp loaded into the pickup truck designed to fit fewer than half the passengers.

“The view was awesome,” Amador said of what he saw from the twists and turns on the Highway 243 descent.

Amador stood next to his parents, whom he met up with at an evacuation center at Banning High School.

The church group from Camp Maranatha in Idyllwild joined hundreds who poured onto the empty campus Wednesday afternoon.

Most at the school got water and headed for the gymnasium. Others waited in the parking lot and began calling friends and family.

Stroup, who drove the kids down the mountain, arrived around 4 p.m.

“We were extra slow because we had them in the back,” he said.

Idyllwild resident Stephanie Yost, who spent the day in Los Angeles, came to the high school since she couldn’t drive to her home. She wasn’t sure what how her four dogs and three cats were faring as flames raced through the area nearby.

“I hope my pets are OK,” she said. “I hope my house is OK.”

Yost said she wished she could have grabbed her photo albums, jewelry and her great-grandmother’s handmade quilt.

She said she was considering her next move, possibly a trip to Starbucks and to watch news coverage of the blaze.

As the sun started to set on the smoky skies, Linda Downey took her three dogs for a walk.

Downey, 65, said she has lived in Idyllwild for six months.

“I cried all day and I don’t want to cry anymore because I’ll ruin my makeup,” she said.

She said she wasn’t able to grab much beyond blankets and pillows.

“When things hit you like this,” she said, “your brain goes 90 miles a minute.”

She said she hoped to put her two Chihuahas and Maltese Poodle in a kennel at the center before processing what happened.

“Thank God that we’re alive,” she said.

• 

  A home on Deer Foot Lane burns into the night as the Cranston fire slows in the cool night air after during more than 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire fighters hose down hot spots on a home on Deer Foot Lane as it burns into the night during the Cranston fire slows in the cool night air after during more than 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A tanker is dwarfted by the plums of smoke from the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A Hotshot firefighter watches as Cranston fire grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A CalFire brush crew makes it way through smoke to fight the fast moving Cranston fire along HWY 74 as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A CalFire helicopter makes a water drop in heavy smoke on the fast moving Cranston fire along HWY 74 as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Flames from the fast moving Cranston fire more than 40 ft. high jump HWY 74 as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Firefighters stay hydrated as they battle the fast moving Cranston fire along HWY 74 as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A brush truck engineer looks over his truck as the Cranston fire burns above HWY 74 in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A CalFire helicopter makes a water drop as plumes of smoke from the fast moving Cranston fire fill the sky above HWY 74 as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Firefighter Leonard Dimaculangan watches his back fire burn away from HWY 74 to fight the Cranston fire as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A CalFire brush crew makes it way through smoke to fight the fast moving Cranston fire along HWY 74 as it grows to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  The Cranston fire jumped from 25 acres to hundreds of acres within minutes, according to tweets from the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A CalFire firefighter from Prado 305 keeps watch as investigators look over the starting spot at 3,000 ft maker as the Cranston fire jumped from 25 acres to over 1,200 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A law enforcement officer photographs evidence after a man was detained at the intersection of Newport Road and State Street south of Hemet in connection with the setting of the Cranston fire near Idyllwild on July 25, 2018 (Courtesy of Timothy Franzese/Public Safety Incidents)

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  A Del Rosa Hotshots crew waits to be deployed to the fire line as the The Cranston fire grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire Riverside County Station 23 hoses down hot spots around some of the homes saved on Deer Foot Lane during the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Flames from the fast moving Cranston fire more than 60 ft. high jump HWY 74 at the top of the hill as it grows to over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire fighter/paramedic Kyle McDermott of Beaumont Station 66 hosed down hot spots on one of the homes on Deer Foot Lane burned in the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A CalFire fighter hosed down hot spots on one of the homes on Deer Foot Lane burned in the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire fighters walk past and look at one of the homes that was unable to be saved on Deer Foot Lane during the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire fighter/paramedic Kyle McDermott of Beaumont Station 66 hosed down hot spots on one of the homes on Deer Foot Lane burned in the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire fighter/paramedic Kyle McDermott of Beaumont Station 66 looks through a home on Deer Foot Lane which burned in the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  HWY 243 is covered in an fire orange sky as the sun is blocks the sun as the fast moving Cranston fire burns more than 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest near Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Firefighter Leonard Dimaculangan walks through the thick smoke form along HWY 74 as the Cranston fire grows to over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire’s air attack tankers made a retardant drop which saved homes from the Cranston fire as it grows to over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Sheriffs and CalFire investigators look over the starting point at 3,000ft. maker as the Cranston fire jumped from 25 acres to over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG

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  A CalFire fighter walk up Deer Foot Lane past one of the four structors burned during the fast moving Cranston fire as it grows to more than over 3,500 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  CalFire firefighters walk back to their brush truck through the burnt landscape around them at the 3,000ft. maker from the Cranston fire that burned more than 3,500 acres and four structures in the San Bernardino National Forest above Hemet on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  A CalFire brush truck drives past a battalion chief truck refueling at the Chevron station the only business open late night in Idyllwild during the Cranston fire so firefighters could refuel and get a bite to eat in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 26, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Firefighters refuel the trucks and get a bite to eat at the Chevron station the only business open late night in Idyllwild during the Cranston fire so firefighters could refuel and get a bite to eat in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 26, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  Fire engines and brush trucks wait to refuel at the Chevron station the only business open late night in Idyllwild during the Cranston fire so firefighters could refuel and get a bite to eat in the San Bernardino National Forest in Idyllwild on Wednesday, July 26, 2018. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  The Cranston fire burns near Hemet on Wednesday, July 25. (Photo by Craig Shultz/The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  The Cranston fire burning near Idyllwild, Wednesday, July 25. (Photo by Craig Shultz)

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  Smokey orange skies from the Cranston Fire can be seen in West Hemet on Wednesday, July 25. (Photo by Craig Shultz, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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  The Cranston fire broke out shortly after noon Wednesday on HIghway 74 between Hemet and Mountain Center. (Craig Schulz, SCNG)

Authorities ordered mandatory evacuations for hundreds of people Wednesday from a ferocious 4,700-acre wildfire off Highway 74 between Hemet and Mountain Center, a fast-moving blaze that burned homes and was aided by a blistering heat wave pushing through the interior of Southern California.

Five homes had burned. The fire was 5 percent contained as of 10:15 p.m.

Authorities said the Cranston fire was the work of an arsonist and arrested a suspect shortly after the fire broke out around noon in the San Jacinto Mountains. Brandon N. McGlover, 32, was arrested on five counts of arson of wildland.

Meanwhile, all residents of Idyllwild, Pine Cove and Fern Valley were told Wednesday afternoon to “leave immediately” in a tweet from the San Bernardino National Forest. Evacuations were expanded to Mountain Center, Apple Canyon, Lake Hemet and Hurkey Creek.

Homes and other structures could be seen burning in video footage. Authorities didn’t say where the homes burned, but did note that the communities of Mountain Center and Keenwild were particularly hard hit.

There was no estimate Wednesday evening when the fire might be contained. More than 700 firefighting personnel were at the blaze, aided during the day by helicopters and airplanes. The flames chewed through 2-foot-high brush and 6-foot-high chaparral.

At 4:38 p.m., the tweet expanding the evacuations came from the San Bernardino National Forest.

#CranstonFire evacuations expanded to all of Idyllwilld, Pine Cove and Fern Valley. Leave immediately.

— San Bernardino National Forest (@SanBernardinoNF) July 25, 2018

The fire jumped from 25 acres to hundreds of acres within minutes. Before 2 p.m., the fire was at 800 acres, and was later expanded to 1,200 acres, then 3,000, and then about 4,700 at 9 p.m.

• Map: This is where the Cranston fire is burning in Idyllwild

The National Forest initially ordered evacuations for southwest Idyllwild, and then widened that to Mountain Center, along McGaugh Road and McCall Park Road, before ordering the immediate evacuation of all of Idyllwild and neighboring Pine Cove and Fern Valley just before 4:40 p.m.

Mountain Center resident James Powell, whose 63rd birthday was Wednesday,  said fire is always on the minds of mountain residents.

“Everybody talks about how it’s due,” he said, standing outside Mountain Feed & Hay, which is near his home. “So here it comes. This could be the big one.”

Beth at the Bluebird Cottage Inn at 26620 Saddle Drive said she and her guests were being evacuated.

“I’m watching the fire come over the ridge,” she said.

Before she could provide her last name, she had to get off of the phone.

The area where the fire is burning has long been a concern to fire officials.

Idyllwild has tightly packed, drought-stricken forests that have not burned in decades. Those conditions can help flames burn too hot and move too fast to extinguish as they race toward communities that have been built into the mountains.

The red-needled trees that line parts of Highway 243 from Mountain Center to Idyllwild are dead, the Forest Service has said. Devoid of moisture, they could catch fire and spread flames easily.

The #CranstonFire PyroCb has begun to generate substantial #lightning, both in-cloud and cloud-to-ground, in the vicinity of the fire. No rainfall associated. #CAwx #Riverside #Wildfire pic.twitter.com/W3jHGqjAow

— NWS San Diego (@NWSSanDiego) July 25, 2018

Lyn Sieliet, a public information officer for the National Forest, said around 5 p.m. that 600 homes were initially evacuated. She said the fire was reported at 11:54 a.m., but she did not have a specific site of origin.

Later in the afternoon, the fire jumped Highway 243 near a Riverside County facility to grind wood waste from trees killed by bark beetles. The facility is at the 5,000-foot elevation marker on the highway.

• More: Live coverage of the Cranston fire

The #CranstonFire PyroCb has begun to generate substantial #lightning, both in-cloud and cloud-to-ground, in the vicinity of the fire. No rainfall associated. #CAwx #Riverside #Wildfire pic.twitter.com/W3jHGqjAow

— NWS San Diego (@NWSSanDiego) July 25, 2018

In a strange mix of elements, isolated thunderstorms were reported at the site of the fire, the National Weather Service said. High temperatures and low humidity were forecast through the week.

Highway 74, between the Cranston Fire Station and Lake Hemet, was closed. So was Highway 243, between Pine Cove and Mountain Center.

Several agencies were fighting the fire, along with several air tankers.

The evacuation center is at Banning High School, 100 W. Westward Ave in Banning, authorities said.

Pastor Tim Stroup of Crosswind Community Church in Palmdale was in Idyllwild when the fire broke out. He was at a summer camp with many other churches and more than 100 kids. He wound up at the Banning evacuation center.

The truck he was in front of, a Chevrolet Silverado pickup, had 16 kids in it. Eight rode inside the cab and eight more rode in the bed. “The kids were really good,” he said. “They kept quiet.”

“We were extra slow because we had them in the back,” Stroup said. The last few miles were bumper to bumper. Angelo Amador, 12, rode in the bed. “The view was awesome,” he said.

“We were extra slow because we had them in the back,” he said. The last few miles were bumper to bumper. Angelo Amador, 12, rode in the bed. “The view was awesome,” he said.

— Shane Newell (@journoshane) July 25, 2018

The San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus at 581 South Grand in San Jacinto is open and accepting all animals, both domestic and large animals, Riverside County officials said.

Here’s where Cranston fire evacuees can take their animals and livestock

Approximately 3,800 customers in the Idyllwild area were without power, and customers were advised to visit www.sce.com/outage for power information.

The Riverside County Emergency Operations Center in the county administrative center in Riverside was activated to Level 3, the lowest level of activation.

A public information number was established by the Forest Service: 909-383-5688.

Brian Rokos of the Southern California News Group contributed to this story.

About 240 firefighters from around the region were battling the blaze, dubbed the Skyline fire, during the afternoon with helicopter crews expected to continue to drop water on the flames through the night.

City of Corona fire officials reported 5 percent containment of the blaze as of about 8:30 p.m.

By late afternoon, nearby streets had been abandoned, with locals obeying official orders to leave the area. Most streets were bereft of parked vehicles, other than those of fire crews who sprayed water on roofs, washing off fire retardant dropped earlier on homes.

As the sun went down, firefighting planes buzzed overhead against a backdrop of brownish orange smoke.

According to the Corona Fire Department, the streets in the Orchard Glen community under mandatory evacuation were Trudy Way, Folson Circle, Brannon Circle, Burrero Way, Rawley Street, Burnett Circle, Elker Road, Corbett Street, Gareth Circle and Fanning Circle.

By late Thursday night, some evacuation orders were being lifted while others remained.

A Red Cross evacuation shelter temporarily was set up at Corona High School, 1150 W. 10th St., Corona, though few people made use of the shelter.

Michele Hambsch and her family, who were evacuated last year during the Canyon fire, were among those who opted to stay in their homes

“We just felt a little bit more secure,” she said. Their truck was packed in case they need to go.

Hambsch and her family stood in the driveway washing their three vehicles that had been doused with fire retardant. They used a leaf blower and rags to dry them.

RELATED: This map shows where the Skyline fire is burning near Corona

See the following for evacuations. https://t.co/4wk0LvzhLN

— Cleveland NF (@ClevelandNF) July 19, 2018

The fire was reported in the area of Tin Mine Canyon near Skyline Drive. The cause wasn’t immediately known.

Three water-dropping helicopters and six retardant-dropping air tankers were on the scene Thursday; two helicopters were going to continue to drop water after dark.

Four strike teams of five fire engines each were dispatched from Orange County to assist Cal Fire, Corona and Cleveland National Forest firefighters. In all, about 240 firefighters were on the scene.

This story is developing. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

While the wine and marijuana industries are similar in some ways, blending those worlds isn’t always easy. Winegrowers and cannabis cultivators increasingly square off over customers, land and workers. And lingering stigmas have kept some of the state’s wine-growing regions from being open to the newly legalized marijuana market.

Now it seems Temecula Valley Wine Country is on track to shut out the cannabis industry. Opposition from local winegrowers and government officials is making it unlikely that marijuana businesses will be allowed to operate in one of the most important agricultural and tourism regions in Riverside County.

“My fear is that you would see vineyards pushed out and there would be outdoor cultivation with chain-linked, barbed-wire fences,” said Danny Martin, board president for the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association.

“We want to be the Temecula Valley Wine Country. We don’t want to become the Temecula Valley Weed Country.”

The message is clear, according to Micah Anderson, president of the cannabis cultivation trade group Southern California Responsible Growers Council.

“Wine is socially acceptable here,” Anderson said. “Cannabis isn’t.”

Ordinance carves out Temecula Valley

Though passage of Proposition 64 in 2016 made it legal in California for adults to consume cannabis, the law also gives cities and counties the authority to regulate most other marijuana activities within their borders.

All marijuana businesses are currently banned in unincorporated Riverside County. However, county leaders are considering an ordinance that would be among the most permissive in California, allowing businesses to grow, manufacture, test, distribute and sell marijuana products in most of the county’s unincorporated areas.

But, as proposed, the Riverside County ordinance would block marijuana businesses from two key areas — residential areas and the Temecula Valley Wine Country. The popular wine-tasting destination has a few dozen wineries spread over more than 17,000 acres of county-controlled land, just east of Temecula’s city limits.

Riverside County Planning Department staff said via email that cannabis cultivation is “not compatible” with the long-term planning for that area, which they said provides a “significant tourist attraction” and “economic benefit” to the region.

Supervisor Chuck Washington — whose district includes Temecula Valley and who once invested in an area winery — also opposes cannabis cultivation in the area because he doesn’t believe it would “further the goals” of the region, according to his chief of staff, Jeff Comerchero.

In a June 20 letter, Martin told Washington that the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association board supported a ban on all commercial cannabis activities in wine country and asked the Board of Supervisors to “continue to deny all inconsistent land uses within this special agricultural area in our county.”

County staff said the first listed goal for the wine region is to “encourage agricultural cultivation.” Cannabis cultivation is an agricultural activity, Anderson said, with growers licensed by the California Department of Food and Agriculture. And cannabis, he added, should be treated as an agricultural product by local regulators.

But Martin insists that adding cannabis-related businesses in Temecula Valley Wine Country would be inconsistent with the existing zoning plan for the area.

Lessons learned

The wine and cannabis industries have coexisted for decades in places such as Mendocino and Sonoma counties, pointed out Josh Drayton, spokesman for the California Cannabis Industry Association.

But now that the state is licensing cannabis businesses for the first time, he said marijuana farmers can come out of the shadows to fight for the same rights and business opportunities wine growers have worked to secure.

“I think the cannabis industry has learned a lot from the wine industry,” Drayton said. “A lot of the challenges they have faced, and found solutions for, are guiding forces for our industry.”

That includes trying to brand cannabis products with appellations of origin. Meaning only marijuana grown in Humboldt County can have that label, just like only wines grown in Napa Valley can boast that origin.

Mom-and-pop wineries have also found creative ways to compete with bigger, corporate vineyards, Drayton said — a struggle that’s just starting for smaller and medium-sized marijuana growers. Transferable strategies might include tax incentives for small operators, boutique tours, paired dinners directed by sommeliers and direct-to-consumer sales that give owners a chance to sell the stories behind their products.

In Temecula Valley, Anderson said cannabis farmers would love to have tasting rooms just like the vineyards do. The county could permit such spaces, known generally as cannabis lounges, but hasn’t chosen to include that option in the proposed ordinance.

Competition is fierce

The industry overlap does pose some common challenges.

Labor costs are going up for growers of wine and cannabis, even as the size of the labor pool is shrinking, Drayton said, with the Trump administration’s immigration policies squeezing things even more.

“The wine industry has struggled with labor for a while,” said George Christie, president of the Wine Industry Network trade group. And with the growing cannabis industry able to offer some workers more money and better working conditions, he said, wineries are feeling the pinch.

Also, in many parts of the state, agricultural land is limited. And once a city or county votes to allow marijuana businesses, land values typically skyrocket, a phenomenon that has already forced out some wine growers.

In early 2017, San Francisco-based cannabis distributor Flow Kana announced it had purchased 80 acres in Redwood Valley that were once home to the Fetzer family winery. The company is transforming the property into Flow Cannabis Institute, which is being billed as a “one-stop facility” for marijuana processing, storage and distribution.

Ampelos Vineyard and Cellars in Lompoc said in its June 24 newsletter that they were moving after their landlord of 12 years got a “high offer” for their property from cannabis producers.

“Sad to see how this new business is rolling into the valley and taking over land and buildings,” wrote Ampelos’ owner Peter Work.

Those threats have come up during the Wine & Weed Symposium, a conference Christie’s group will host set for its second year in Santa Rosa on Aug. 2. But Christie said a “much larger percentage” of the conference’s roughly 500 attendees — including a number of “older, conservative wine industry people” — is interested in hearing about opportunities available in cannabis.

Christie sees overlap not just with business models between the industries, but also with the type of people they attract. Wine growers, he said, are typically hard-working, passionate, strategic entrepreneurs who aren’t afraid of a challenge. He sees many of the same qualities in cannabis entrepreneurs, he added, and nothing of the stoner stereotype he once expected.

“As that stigma sort of erodes,” he said, “there are more and more people in the wine industry that are kind of open to what opportunities this may bring.”

There are already wine growers in the Temecula area who are experimenting with small marijuana grows, according to Anderson. And he said there are many more entrepreneurs waiting on the sidelines, hoping the county will open the region to licensed marijuana businesses.

Laws limit overlap

The trend of literally mixing these two worlds by infusing wine with cannabis was becoming fashionable a couple years ago, with singer/cannabis entrepreneur Melissa Etheridge touting a “wine tincture” in her line of Etheridge Farms products.

Then California issued the first draft of its still-evolving rules for the marijuana industry. Those regulations included a strict ban on products that mix alcohol and cannabis and severely limited public events where marijuana is consumed, such as the wine and weed pairing dinners that had begun popping up everywhere.

Since cannabis remains illegal under federal law, wineries could also be jeopardizing their federal licenses if they start making or selling cannabis products on the same property.

“There are a bunch of people that thought they were going to go that road,” Anderson said. “That left a lot of broken dreams.”

Some companies, such as Hermosa Beach-based Rebel Coast Winery, are navigating the regulations by making cannabis-infused wine that’s alcohol-free. And event companies are trading infused dinners for tours that stop at both wineries and cannabis businesses.

Such ventures show that it doesn’t have to be a “zero sum game,” Christie said, where either the wine or the cannabis industry wins. And in Anderson’s view, they also show that marijuana entrepreneurs will work with any reasonable regulations that are thrown their way, including rules that he says could mitigate whatever safety, aesthetic or odor concerns neighbors might have.

That’s something he hopes Riverside County will take into consideration as officials write the playbook for how wine and weed will mix in Temecula Valley.

“We all want to be good neighbors,” he said. “Give us options, don’t just shut us out.”

The issue will be decided when the Riverside County Board of Supervisors takes up the proposed cannabis ordinance sometime later this year.