THERMAL, Calif. (CNS) - A fire that spread to 27 acres in Thermal, leaving one firefighter injured, was extinguished Friday and all evacuation orders were reduced to warnings.
The fire comes just before the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in nearby Indio, which begins this afternoon.
Fire crews responded near Avenue 62 and Jackson Street in Thermal at 9:42 p.m. Thursday to a wind-driven fire in five acres of brush, according to the Riverside County Fire Department. The fire was rapidly spreading.
Fire officials said that an evacuation order was placed by 11:30 p.m. in the area between Avenue 62, Monroe Avenue, Van Buren Street, and Avenue 63.
As Riverside County Sheriff's deputies assisted with evacuations, one firefighter was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, according to fire officials. An evacuation center was opened at the gym in Desert Mirage High School, 86150 Avenue 66.
Firefighters worked to contain the fire through the night and by Friday morning, the forward rate of the fire was stopped at 27 acres, fire officials said. Control lines were placed around the flames overnight as crews remained on the scene working on containment in the morning.
All evacuation orders were subsequently reduced to evacuation warnings and the evacuation center was closed shortly before 9 a.m.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
