Line fire flare-up tips California over a grim milestone: 1 million acres burned in 2024

The flare-up of the Line fire worsened Monday as evacuation orders expanded and firefighters lost some ground on containment of the San Bernardino County wildfire.

The new acres charred also pushed California across a grim milestone: 1 million acres burned in 2024.

The Line fire, which has been burning in San Bernardino County for almost a month, began spreading faster over the weekend due to unusually warm temperatures that sucked moisture from vegetation and the air, according to Cal Fire. Containment of the fire slipped from 83% to 78% as of late Monday.

“Firefighters had expected some movement” of the fire, but its behavior “exceeded expectations,” said Cal Fire in a Monday update.

The Red Cross opened a new evacuation shelter at Apple Valley Conference Center on Monday to support those affected by the Line fire, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. The center is at 14975 Dale Evans Parkway. The evacuation shelter at Redlands East Valley High School, 31000 E. Colton Ave., remained open.

On Tuesday morning, Cal Fire reported that the fire grew to 44,046 acres but crews regained some containment, increasing it to 80%. The acreage burned combined with the ongoing Bridge and Airport fires has pushed the total acres burned in California this year to 1,000,181, according to Cal Fire.

This surpasses by far the total acres burned during the same time period last year — 293,362 — but is roughly on par with the five-year average for the period.

The devastating Park fire in Northern California contributed significantly to the milestone, burning almost 430,000 acres between July 24 and Sept. 26 when it reached full containment. It is the fourth-largest fire in California history, according to Cal Fire.

So far this fire season, a total of 1,433 structures have been destroyed, and one fatality has been reported, the agency said.

The Line fire has damaged or destroyed five structures and resulted in four firefighter injuries. The suspected arson fire started on Sept. 5, and an arrest has been made.

On Sunday, residents in Seven Oaks and the Barton Flats area were ordered to evacuate because of the immediate threat of the fire. On Monday this order was expanded to include Angelus Oaks and the community of Big Bear Lake, including Moonridge, Sugarloaf and south Erwin Lake.