Hawarden fire threatens 1,500 homes in Riverside; 3 destroyed, 4 damaged (2024)

A brush fire raged through a section of Riverside on Sunday, July 21, destroying at least three homes, threatening 1,500 more and forcing scores of families to flee.

The Hawarden fire began in the afternoon near Alessandro Heights and by late Sunday had exploded into a blaze that consumed 500 acres, impacting many homes, particularly in the vicinity of Hawarden Drive and Mary Street. The thick smoke was visible miles away.

UPDATE: Fireworks possibly caused destructive Hawarden fire in Riverside, authorities say

Among the destroyed homes was Noel Piri’s.

He and his wife, three months pregnant, were in Orange County when they got a call that there was a fire in their neighborhood.

They arrived to rescue their dog. They called the Fire Department. No one showed up, he said.

By then, the fire appeared to have gotten a foothold near the home. After several calls, the firefighters did arrived, but by then half the house was on fire, he said.

Later Sunday, a dejected Piri rummaged through the home’s charred remains. He tried to understand the scope of the blaze and the challenge for firefighters, and he lamented the loss of a home he and his wife had remodeled just four months ago.

“It was kind of sad to see the house was gone,” he said, clearly stunned.

Evacuated areas included those at and around: Eagle Crest Court and Chartwell Drive, Horace Street and Hawarden Drive, Golden Hills, Berry Road and Via Vista Drive, and Alessandro Boulevard and Trautwein Road, said Kaitlin Reierson, a city spokeswoman.

Evacuees were being directed to the Orange Terrace Community Center, at 20010 Orange Terrace Parkway in Riverside. That’s where nearly 30 families and others went to wait for information on the status of their homes.

Bernadette Kovacs and her two sons and their tabby cat Pepper were the last family in the center on Sunday night. Earlier in the day, the family watched as the fire crept up the creek bed behind the Kovacs’ home.

Kovacs’ husband monitored the fire. They could hear the cracks and pops as it approached their backyard.

“I always knew it was a possibility, but I never thought it would creep up that close,” Kovacs said.

By evening, 50 firefighters were on site with four tankers and one helicopter, with additional units sent from San Bernardino County and Riverside County Fire, the Orange County Fire Authority and fire departments from Hemet, Murrieta, Pachanga and Morongo.

RELATED: This map shows where the Hawarden and Eagle fires are burning in Riverside County

“This is an ongoing emergency situation, and we’d ask that you stay out of the area and if you’ve been asked to evacuate please comply with the evacuation orders,” Riverside Councilmember Sean Mill said. “For your safety, and (that) of our first responders.”

The Kovacs immediately began packing their bags and were in their cars by the time the police came to knock on their door.

“We came here just to get information, my little one was really anxious,” Kovacs said. “As soon as he saw the fire started, he started packing his bags.”

Kovacs said it was particularly challenging to convince the family cat to go into her crate but the family packed bags and important paperwork and then went out for ice cream while they awaited news. They received an alert about the evacuation center and decided to relocate there.

Riverside councilmembers Philip Falcone and Sean Mill came to the evacuation site to comfort families. Many returned home by Sunday night.

Falcone said families from the surrounding community came to the shelter to offer their help or just drop off food and water.

“There is a sense of community here, when something bad happens Riversiders don’t ask questions, they come together,” Mill said.

The Hawarden fire was not the only hot spot in the area on Sunday.

Firefighters on Sunday evening stopped forward progress on the fast-moving Eagle fire that forced evacuations in El Cerrrito, east of the 15 Freeway in the afternoon.

Nearly 175 firefighters worked to contain that blaze, which started in the area of Eagle Canyon and Cajalco roads, east of Corona, officials said. As of 7:50 p.m., the fire remained at 450 acres with no forward progress, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire authorities.

Thedangerously hot and dry conditions around Southern California were expected to last until the middle of this week. Eastern and southern portions of the Inland Empire, including Lake Elsinore, Hemet, and San Bernardino, could get temperatures reaching 104-plus degrees in the next few days, National Weather Service meteorologist Adam Roser said.

Originally Published: July 21, 2024 at 4:45 p.m.