Mother Lode Firefighters Head To SoCal

Help from Mother Lode firefighters is now in Southern California.

Miles of flame, pushed by 25 mile an hour winds, have jumped ridges and roads on a smoky five-mile march toward Rancho Cucamonga (in San Bernardino County). Authorities have mandated evacuations.

According to a spokeswoman for the area California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection in San Andreas, a dozen fire supervisors, eight local fire hand crews and a strike team of five fire engines and firefighters have been sent from the Mother Lode to help battle the fires in burning Southern California.

The state fire department has also canceled all firefighter scheduled days off and the department has stepped up staffing and station coverage in both Tuolumne and Calaveras counties due to the high fire danger.