The cause of a wind-whipped industrial fire that generated heavy black smoke visible for miles, forcing the closure of a portion of Main Street in Riverside, has been determined to be “accidental in nature,” according to Riverside City Fire official Greg White.
White said the investigation is continuing into the four-alarm blaze that started at a pallet company, located at 424 N. Main St. The fire was reported shortly after 3 p.m. on March 16.
Dry winds pushed the fire through the length of the pallet yard into nearby grass fields, including a soccer facility and part of a golf course, prompting Cal Fire to be called in to deploy a helicopter for several water drops.
White added that “with the nature of the winds, the fire was pushed straight toward (Riverside City) Fire Station 6. The only problem was, they were out (of the station). They were out here (by the pallet company) battling the fire.”
The fire, which was first reported as a one-alarm incident, quickly exploded into four-alarm status as the strong winds pushed it. The winds shifted and drove the flames in different directions once it cleared the back buildings and into the field, according to firefighters on the scene.
Miriam Ochoa, an employee from one of the nearby businesses in the path of the fire, said, “I urged the men to run for it, and we kept hearing tanks blowing up as we ran past.”
She admitted that “it was really scary” because of the loud pops and bangs from the fire superheating equipment and supplies as it burned. She was worried because there was a metal company nearby that does welding, and a fence company right next door on their side. She said “they felt surrounded.”
The fire quickly spread into rows of stacked pallets about 15 feet high at the front of the yard. Hundreds of pallets were seen stacked in long rows all the way to the back of the deep property. San Bernardino Fire and Jurupa Fire Department were called in to assist.
Heavy black smoke rose high into the sky. Nearby businesses evacuated immediately as smoke and flames leaned in toward them. Their abandoned big rig tractors, cars and equipment also caught on fire.
All four lanes of North Main Street were closed to allow firefighters room to maneuver and position themselves for their water hoses. Driven by shifting winds, the fire swept into grassy areas and threatened large warehouses.
News helicopters could be seen hovering near the Riverside City College campus as heavy smoke drifted over downtown. Local CBS news reporter Dean Fioresi said that “by 6 p.m., firefighters and city officials had issued evacuation orders for the (south and west) areas threatened by the fire,” including additional businesses and a dense residential area.
CBS News also reported that “by 7:30 p.m., the fire had burned 22 acres behind the pallet yard. It burned the Ab Brown Soccer Facility, parts of the old Riverside Golf Course,” and up to Reid Park, where there are youth sports-training fields.
Phil Pitchford, the city of Riverside’s public information officer, said that there is already “a strain on the system, driving up response times. The department needs 84 more firefighters, two new fire stations and several refurbished ones, to respond properly to a year-round fire season.”
The city’s master plan, released in January, concluded that the expansion would help the most in covering areas and reducing response times. Currently, in comparison, the smaller city of Corona has more stations and coverage than Riverside has.
A total of 94 firefighters responded and fought the fire, of which three were injured and taken to the hospital. Two were released, one that night and one the next day. The third firefighter remained hospitalized for a time and was later released. He is still off duty and recuperating at home.
