Holy Fire (fire)
Progression
The Holy Fire was first reported at 1:15 PM PST on Monday, August 6, 2018, in Holy Jim Canyon (from which the fire derives its name), a community of about 40 homes and cabins in the Trabuco Canyon area of the Santa Ana Mountains. Evacuation orders were issued for parts of Trabuco Canyon, including the entire community of Holy Jim. Trabuco Creek Road was subsequently closed at Trabuco Canyon Road indefinitely as the Orange County Sheriff Department continues their investigation. It quickly moved uphill in a northeast direction, jumping the crest of the Santa Ana Mountains into neighboring Riverside County, threatening the areas of Corona, El Cerrito, and Glen Ivy Hot Springs. At the time, the cause of the fire was under investigation.
Effects
By August 8, thirteen cabins had been destroyed in Holy Jim (sic - impacted cabins are in Trabuco). No major injuries were reported. By August 10, one home along Ortega Highway had also been destroyed, the only confirmed home in Riverside County at that time. By August 13, the Holy Fire had destroyed a total of 18 structures in both Orange and Riverside Counties.
Evacuation areas
On August 13, the neighborhoods under mandatory evacuation included:
- Blue Jay
- El Cariso
- Glen Eden (Corona)
- Holy Jim Canyon
- Indian Canyon (Corona)
- Sycamore Creek (Corona)
- Horsethief Canyon (Corona)
- Mayhew Canyon (Corona)
- Rancho Capistrano
- Trabuco Canyon
As of August 13, neighborhoods under voluntary evacuation included:
- Trilogy (Temescal Valley)
Arson
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Forrest_Gordon_Clark%2C_51%2C_suspected_arsonist.jpg/181px-Forrest_Gordon_Clark%2C_51%2C_suspected_arsonist.jpg)
The fire was allegedly started by 51-year-old Forrest Gordon Clark, who ignited it near a cabin owned by Clark in the Holy Jim Canyon community. He was arrested on August 8, 2018, and booked into the Orange County Jail on suspicion of two counts of felony arson, one count of felony threat to terrorize, and one count of misdemeanor resisting arrest. Two weeks before the fire started, Clark reportedly sent a message to Mike Milligan, the volunteer fire chief of Holy Jim Volunteer Fire Department, reading "This place is going to burn." However, Clark later claimed he was asleep at the time the fire started. Clark’s bail was set for $1 million.
Court appearances and acquittal
On August 10, 2018, Forrest Gordon Clark made his first court appearance. He was originally scheduled to appear on August 9, 2018. However, he refused to leave his jail cell. He was due back in court on August 17, 2018. On August 17, when he appeared for the second time, which was the third attempt for his court hearing, Clark’s erratic behavior caused a judge to stop the normal proceedings. The charges were subsequently suspended so Clark’s mental health and competency could be examined. Two examinations were submitted before his next court appearance on October 10, 2018. A third, "tie-breaking" examination was ordered after competing examinations were submitted. On November 28, 2018, Clark was ruled competent to assist attorneys in his defense, and the resisting arrest charges were subsequently dropped. On December 12, 2018, Clark pled not guilty to the remaining charges.
On February 10, 2021, a request to lower Clark's US$1,000,000 bail was denied by a judge. The judge stated that the rejection stemmed from a concern for public safety. On June 1, 2023, Forrest Clark was found not guilty of all arson charges.
Growth and containment
Growth and Containment
Date | Acres burned (ha) | Containment | Growth (%) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aug 7 | 4,000 (1,600) | 0%
|
N/A | ||
Aug 8 | 6,200 (2,500) | 0%
|
+55% | ||
Aug 9 | 10,236 (4,142) | 5%
|
+65.1% | ||
Aug 10 | 19,107 (7,732) | 10%
|
+86.6% | ||
Aug 11 | 21,473 (8,690) | 29%
|
+12.4% | ||
Aug 13 | 22,714 (9,192) | 52%
|
+5.7% | ||
Aug 14 | 22,986 (9,302) | 59%
|
+1.2% | ||
Aug 15 | 22,986 (9,302) | 78%
|
+0% | ||
Aug 16 | 22,986 (9,302) | 82%
|
+0% | ||
Aug 18 | 22,986 (9,302) | 91%
|
+0% | ||
Aug 24 | 22,986 (9,302) | 95%
|
+0% | ||
Aug 26 | 22,986 (9,363) | 100%
|
+0% | ||
Aug 27 | 23,136 (9,363) | 94%
|
+0.6% | ||
Sep 13 | 23,136 (9,363) | 100%
|
+0% |
See also
- 2018 California wildfires
- Santiago Fire – burned in a similar location in 2007; also caused by arson
- Silverado Fire – burned in a similar location in October 2020; ignited by Santa Ana Winds.
- Mendocino Complex Fire
References
- ^ "Holy Fire". Cleveland National Forest. September 14, 2018. Archived from the original on September 15, 2018. Retrieved September 15, 2018.
- ^ "Holy Fire Reignites, Burns 150 Acres". CBS Los Angeles. August 28, 2018. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
- ^ "Holy Fire". CAL FIRE. August 26, 2018. Archived from the original on August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
- ^ Ruben Vives; Laura J. Nelson; Doug Smith (August 12, 2018). "Firefighters gain upper hand on 22,700-acre Holy fire in Cleveland National Forest, as containment rises to 41%". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
- ^ "2018 National Large Incident Year-to-Date Report" (PDF). National Interagency Fire Center. September 17, 2018. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
- ^ Faith Karimi and Eliott C. McLaughlin (2018-08-10). "'The place is going to burn,' arson suspect allegedly texted before Holy Fire". CNN.
- ^ Emery, Sean (February 10, 2021). "Judge declines to reduce bail for man accused of igniting massive Holy fire". The Orange County Register. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
- ^ "Holy Fire Now 92 Percent Contained". NBC Southern California. 21 August 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
- ^ Grad, James Queally, Joseph Serna, Alene Tchekmedyian, Shelby (2018-08-06). "Firefighters battle 4,000-acre brush fire in Orange County amid extreme heat". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Holy Fire: Suspect arrested in connection to blaze". ABC 7 Los Angeles. 2018-08-08. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
- ^ Brian Rokos (September 14, 2018). "Holy fire in Riverside and Orange counties is 100 percent contained". The Press-Enterprise. Retrieved September 15, 2018.
- ^ "Holy Fire more than 9,600 acres near Lake Elsinore-Corona area". ABC7 Los Angeles. 2018-08-09. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
- ^ "Who was Holy Jim, anyway?". 8 August 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
- ^ "Holy fire spreads to 4,000 acres in Orange, Riverside counties". The Mercury News. 2018-08-07. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
- ^ Haire, Chris (2018-08-08). "Holy Jim, devastated by fire, faces specter of vanishing forever". The Press-Enterprise. Retrieved 2018-08-10.
- ^ "Holy Fire chars 9,600 acres near Lake Elsinore-Corona area". ABC7 Los Angeles. 2018-08-09. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
- ^ Marc Cota-Robles. "Holy Fire explodes to 18,137 acres in Lake Elsinore area". ABC7.
- ^ "What to Know: Holy Fire Evacuations, Road Closures". 10 August 2018. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- ^ Salvo, Christina (2018-08-13). "Holy Fire containment rises to 52 percent in Riverside County". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
- ^ De Atley, Richard; Shultz, Craig; Saavedra, Tony (2018-08-12). "Firefighters get a handle on the Holy fire, containment jumps to 51%". Orange County Register. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
- ^ "More are August 2018".
- ^ "Man charged with arson in California 'Holy Fire'". WGN9. 2018-08-09.
- ^ "Man Suspected of Starting Holy Fire in Trabuco Canyon Area Is Charged After Refusing to Leave Jail Cell for Court Appearance". KTLA. 2018-08-09. Retrieved 2018-08-11.
- ^ "'It's a Lie', Holy Fire Arson Suspect Says During First Court Appearance; Arraignment Continued". KTLA. 2018-08-10. Retrieved 2018-08-11.
- ^ "Third arraignment attempt for Holy Fire suspect Forrest Clark goes off the rails again; charges suspended for competency evaluation". DesertSun. 2018-08-17. Retrieved 2018-08-17.
- ^ "Judge drops two counts against Holy Fire suspect Forrest Gordon Clark in ongoing hearing". Desert Sun. Retrieved 2019-02-16.
- ^ Emery, Sean (June 1, 2023). "Man acquitted of igniting massive Holy fire" https://www.ocregister.com/2023/06/01/man-acquitted-of-igniting-massive-holy-fire/. The Orange County Register. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
External links
- Holy Fire Archived 2018-09-15 at the Wayback Machine (InciWeb)