Most of I-15 reopened after destructive blaze in Cajon Pass
All but one southbound lane of Interstate 15 at the Cajon Pass were open Saturday night after a fast-moving 5,400-acre blaze burned through cars and trucks, chased motorists with its hot flames and shut down the main thoroughfare between Las Vegas and Southern California for six to 11 hours.
The North Fire in California‘s San Bernardino County was 45 percent contained Saturday night, the Victorville Free Press reported Saturday.
The blaze spread quickly Friday afternoon, jumping the freeway about 200 miles southwest of Las Vegas.
Northbound lanes of the interstate were closed until 8:30 p.m Friday, and southbound lanes did not reopen until 1 a.m. Saturday, earlier than Caltrans officials expected -- 11 hours after the blaze started.
Mandatory evacuations were lifted about 7 p.m. Saturday, according to the San Bernardino National Forest Twitter account. Three homes, eight buildings and 64 vehicles were lost to the fire, but no one was injured.
A damage estimate was not immediately available.
Contact Kimberly De La Cruz at kdelacruz@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Find her on Twitter: @KimberlyinLV.
