SHASTA COUNTY, California — Firefighters have stopped a vegetation fire from spreading, which they named the Bear Fire, which burned more than eight acres along Bear Mountain Road and Old Oregon Trail on Monday.

On Monday, August 26 at 5:11 p.m., Cal Fire’s Shasta-Trinity Unit reported the fire was 25% contained, having burned a total of 20 acres.

Tyler Van Dyke spoke with Cal Fire Chief Matt Alexander at the scene, who said firefighters were called to reports of a vegetation fire near Old Oregon Trail and Bear Mountain Road that had started in an unusual manner around 4 p.m.

“This was a vehicle towing a trailer and there was a fault with the axle of the trailer which caused this fire to occur. As such, we are asking the public to maintain all their vehicles and trailers properly and to secure their loads when towing,” Alexander said.

Alexander said at 8pm on Monday evening that the fire is completely under control.

The fire was moderately burning in very dry vegetation and also near the Fawn fire scar. There was no damage to buildings.

Alexander also wanted to remind everyone that we are still in peak fire season, despite last week’s rainfall and much lower temperatures.

“We are in the middle of the fire season. We had a break from the extreme heat and drought, but now we are back on top of it. These fuels have been dry for months, so it only takes a few hours for the grass to dry out in the rain and be ready to burn again. Then we are ready to go again,” Alexander said.

One firefighter was injured when he was struck by a vehicle and was taken to a local hospital for evaluation.

Therefore, Alexander wanted to remind the public that when there is an emergency and the roads are not yet closed, they should drive extremely carefully in those areas.

It was a multi-agency response: Cal Fire, Redding Fire, Mountain Gate Fire District and several other agencies.

Alexander also said they wanted to get there quickly because they knew it was near the burn scar of the Fawn Fire, which has burned aggressively and damaged homes in the past.

—

If you would like to report errors or problems with this article, please email the editors.